Bulevard Rosa Shopping Arcade To Be Converted Into Large Format Stores

20 October 2017 – Eje Prime

The historical Bulevard Rosa, managed by the Catalan Vives family, will close its doors during the first half of next year, according to explanations provided to Eje Prime by sources close to the process. The establishment, which will be converted into between large format stores for fashion retailers, is whereby following in the footsteps of the Madrilenian shopping arcade El Jardín de Serrano, which is also in the process of closing its doors for a refit to welcome Uniqlo’s first megastore in Madrid.

Bulevard Rosa opened its doors in December 1978, to become one of the most iconic shopping arcades in the centre of Barcelona. The complex, which occupies the ground floor of the office building located at number 55 Paseo de Gracia, currently comprises around 100 shops and has a gross leasable area of 5,200 m2.

According to sources at Bulevard Rosa, the managers of the shopping centre have already contacted the tenants to inform them that their rental contracts will not be renewed beyond June 2018. According to sources in the real estate business, the owners’ project involves transforming the arcade into between two and four megastores, depending on the needs of the operators that express interest in the location (…).

This decision comes ten years after the managers of Bulevard Rosa tried to revitalise the shopping centre by expanding it and introducing new operators. In 2008, the company converted its former movie theatres into a Nespresso megastore, whilst the Galician ladies’ fashion label Bimba y Lola also recently expanded its store in the complex.

With the disappearance of Bulevard Rosa, the owners of the complex may be able to generate a return on their commercial investment with the opening of new large format stores. Currently, the monthly rent for a store on Paseo de Gracia amounts to between €240/m2/month and €310/m2/month, with a return of 3.8%.

Moreover, fortune is playing into the hands of the owners of the shopping arcade, given that the availability of stores along this stretch of Paseo de Gracia is almost nil (…).

Original story: Eje Prime (by Custodio Pareja)

Translation: Carmel Drake