German construction supplies and DIY network Hornbach isinvesting approximately 40 million euros in the location of theformer Prisma shopping centre on DN1 (National Road 1), whichclosed in 2004 for lack of customers.
Prisma was one of the best-known fashion shopping centres inBucharest in 1996-2000, when foreign retailers and real estatedevelopers avoided Romania, but later became a victim of theexpansion of the major store chains and malls.
"Prisma was a business that benefited from the lack of moderntrade formats during its first years in business. It was estimatedto have 15,000 clients per day during weekends and 2,000 on theaverage in the rest of the week," says Razvan Gheorghe, generalmanager of Cushman & Wakefield Romania.
Hornbach bought the former Prisma site in 2007, when it paid 20million euros, and could complete work on the store by the end ofthis year, its officials say. They also want to persuade anotherretailer to come to that particular location.
Will the German retailer reach Prisma's traffic peak?
"A daily average of 13,000-14,000 visitors in a location 20kilometres away from Bucharest is very high, considering a majormall in the city sees traffic of 25,000-30,000," says GeorgianaAndrei, head of Colliers Romania's retail division.
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