Dubai preparing to raise 20 new shopping centers

It has been revealed to The Address Dubai Marina that the increase in demand among the outlying communities has resulted in a massive increase in the number of community-based shopping malls.  The most recent one was opened at Jumeirah Park Pavilion by Nakheel.

The head of leasing at Nakheel Malls, Humaid Zayed Alnuaimi, said the average mall size is 80000ft², with the supermarket anchor tenant obtaining a reserved space of 25000ft².  The malls are set to have around 20 to 30 units, with an average size of 1000ft².  He said the smaller malls offer retail offerings driven by the community, which differs to the larger malls currently available.

The malls are tailor-made to suit the different communities.  The area around Jebel Ali and the Dubai 2020 site will see around seven malls.  

Rentals will be based on the value within the area, but will be lower than at larger centers.  It will be determined by the expected traffic.

Rents in malls have increased by 10% since the start of the year, but this is expected to slow down to 5% after 2015.