Arabian Centres announces plans for Mall of Arabia Riyadh

Arabian Centres, developer, owner and operator of shopping malls in Saudi Arabia, has officially unveiled its plans for ‘Mall of Arabia Riyadh’ – one of the most anticipated and ground-breaking retail real estate developments in the Middle East.

The Mall of Arabia Riyadh will be the Kingdom’s premier retail destination. Strategically situated along main road arteries into Riyadh, its iconic design will provide the perfect location and access to luxury brands for Riyadh’s affluent residents.

It will be the flagship mall in the Arabian Centres portfolio and is scheduled to open in 2018. The site of the mall covers 2.8 million sqft, including a five-star luxury hotel, landscaped gardens and water features. The mall will house 336 retail stores with 1.8 million sqft of GLA. The interior of the mall is inspired by the region’s surrounding nature of sand dunes, wadis and mountains.

“The Mall of Arabia is breaking new ground in Saudi Arabia’s retail and real estate sector. We are creating and bringing new and exciting concepts that have not been seen before in the Kingdom,” says Simon Wilcock, CEO of Arabian Centres. “Malls are an intrinsic part of the fabric of everyday life in Saudi Arabia and we are setting a new standard for the region that will change the shopping and leisure experience going forward.”

Arabian Centres’ malls attract 131 million visitors each year and the company saw more than 27% rise in footfall in the first nine months of this year (January-September 2015). Occupancy rates are at 97%, with malls reaching capacity within three months of opening. Part of Fawaz Alhokair Group, Arabian Centres has over 3,400 retail outlets including 530 international and local brands, alongside family leisure offerings.