Where to bigly shop in The United Kingdom

De Les Feux de l'Amour - Le site Wik'Y&R du projet Y&R.

It is always intriguing to look at extremes, in a way. The biggest flight terminals, the tallest skyscrapers, the deepest wells, and so on. Why? That's a good question. Probably because records are fun, or maybe because we want to see the extent of human ability and capacity, and huge structures are probably the most obvious ways of assessing this. Take, for instance, the idea of the largest shopping malls in the United Kingdom. It shows to us the level of development in the country, the development level of a particular urban area, the purchasing power of the country or of the local population. There are of course limitations to this kind of approach, as we know nothing of the number of malls in a given region (maybe one locale has one huge mall while another three smaller ones) or the caliber of offering within (lots of reasonably priced stores compared to a few luxury ones). But nonetheless, let’s check this out.

In Tyne and Wear, you will discover a giant of a shopping centre. David Fischel intu’s CEO is probably pleased that his business purchased this gem way back in 1995. It is truly impressive. Hosting five anchor tenants and featuring over 340 others, it is the biggest mall since 1986, displaying the kind of forward-thinking approach that might be hard to come across these days. It even comes with its own train station. One could be understood for mistaking it for a city. And one that keeps growing at that, with constant extensions and expansions going on.

If Steven M. Lowy Westfield’s CEO was questioned about what the greatest mall in the UK is, he would keenly point to his Stratford location. This little guy is a relative newcomer, opened in London just in time for the 2012 summer games. At the center of what is a budding brand-new region of the city, it is virtually its own urban area, with its own residential and hotel towers and its own outdoor avenues. The centre is a clear winner if we consider location, based among brand new sports arenas and other structures and in a new thriving part of the global metropolis.

This shopping centre is quite fascinating in that it has many proprietors, though Mike Wells Prudential’s CEO will happily let you know that his corporation is the largest shareholder. Situated in Kent, it employs a whopping 7000 people (major factories frequently have less), and sees 27 million visitors per year (just 20 times the region’s population). The shopping centre is enclosed by spectacular greenery all around and is itself housed in an unassuming glass structure, almost making you forget that you’re merely exchanging hard earned cash for goods and services. As competition increases, this centre is always looking to develop and keep growing.