RIGA - A study carried out by a local paper has found that Finnish-owned Stockmann shopping center is the most efficient of Riga's retail industry, which has undergone a period of rapid expansion in the past two years.
The Russian-language business daily Bizness & Baltiya reported that each square meter of the Stockmann shopping center/department store generated 2,966 lats (4,220 euros) in turnover in 2005, a 96 percent boost from 2004. This result puts Stockmann far ahead of the second-place mall 's Spice 's which was surpassed by 936 lats in revenue per square meter.
A year ago the difference between the first and second-place malls 's Stockmann and Centrs 's was only 23 lats per square meter, Bizness & Baltiya reported, thus showing Stockmann's increasing lead over competitors.
Experts explain Stockmann's central location, the proximity of public transport, the nearby Coca-Cola Plaza cinema complex and the store's "crazy days" discount campaigns.
The Spice shopping center last year generated 2,030 lats in sales per square meter, up 70 percent from 2004. Alfa made 1,537 lats, up 89 percent; Origo 1,515 lats, up 35 percent; Centrs 1,403 lats, down 24 percent; Mols 1,320 lats, up 24 percent; Domina Shopping 1,068 lats, up 119 percent; and Olympia made 963 lats per square meter, up 31 percent.
B&B said that last year there were no new shopping centers opened in Latvia, but there were several projects underway. The main retail events in 2005 were Spice's expansion project, the change of Olympia's owners and Centrs' closing down for reconstruction, said the daily.
