Auchan to Open a Shop at the Plant
Auchan hypermarket chain will build a shopping mall on the site of Ordzhonikidze machine-tool plant in Moscow, near Leninsky prospect, one of the capital’s busiest streets. Experts believe that the French company will soon become the largest food retailer in the central Moscow. The store in Leninsky prospect will be Auchan’s second shopping mall inside the city’s third ring road, while none of its rivals have succeeded in gaining plots in the central part of the city so far.
Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov announced yesterday that Auchan would build its outlet on the territory of the plant. He, however, did not name the size of the area given to the French and the schedule of the project. He said the decree on the matter signed Monday evening would “balance the interests of Auchan trading network, the machine-tool plant and the city”. Ordzhonikidze machine-tool plant is situated between Leninsky prospect and the third ring road. The plant’s stocks are divided between its management and exterior legal entities. The territory of the plant is 13 ha. The former production floor is now occupied by shops, specialized exhibitions and De la Guarda Argentinean show which puts on its performances there. The French chain has been seeking the right to build a shopping mall there for four years.
Experts note that the premises near Leninsky prospect have become the second site by Moscow’s third ring road [it connects the city center and the adjacent outskirts] that the city allocates for the company. Auchan will also become the anchor tenant in the shopping mall in the territory of the first Cold Storage Facility. Market watchers say the third ring road is now very promising for the development and new shopping malls. This may be the only one place in Moscow where there is quite a number of undeveloped areas left. Retailers’ strive to open shops as close to the city center as possible is accounted by the fact that the flow of would-be buyers there is wider that at the Moscow Ring Road by the city border.
by
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of July 27, 2005
|
