Approximately 8.1 million sqm of new shopping center space will be added across Europe in H2 2016 and throughout 2017, with operators seeking to add more entertainment elements designed to improve customer experience, according to Cushman & Wakefield. More than 70,000 sqm of new space will be added to the Czech market next year. Aupark Hradec Králové was the only newly finished shopping center to open in the Czech Republic in 2016, alongside the refurbishment of Galerie Přerov. Construction is set to accelerate after a slow H1 2016. The 2017 pipeline includes more space than what was completed in 2015 and 2016 combined, according to Jan Kotrbáček, partner and head of retail for Central Europe at Cushman & Wakefield. Central Jablonec is set to come on-line next year. Meanwhile 80 percent of new supply will be extensions of existing centers, including Centrum Chodov, IGY České Budějovice and Galerie Butovice. “For future development we see potential in the center of Prague, for example the Savarin project in Prague 1, Dejvice Center in Prague 6 and Palác Stromovka in Prague 7. There is also opportunity for further development of shopping centers in the center of Pilsen, Brno and Zlín,” says Kotrbáček.
