Via Outlets has strong year with 100+ lockdown leasing deals

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Dec 10, 2020

The outlets sector remains one of the most resilient retail channels at present and after this week's news that London Designer Outlet has seen surging sales since reopening, now we've heard that Europe-based Via Outlets has completed more than 117 new leasing deals since the start of the pandemic.

In fact, it has completed more than 300 leasing deals overall this year and it said that its success is a testament to its overall strategy “despite difficult market conditions and this year’s extensive periods of lockdown”. 

In total, new leases, renewals, upsizes and downsizes representing a total area of 43,300 sq m have been concluded in 2020, with more deals still being processed. This includes 12 entirely new brands joining the portfolio — American Eagle, L’Oréal, Pinko, Cavalli Class, Samsøe & Samsøe and digitally-native NA-KD.

In fact, American Eagle opened its very first European outlets in Fashion Arena Prague and Landquart Fashion Outlet in Switzerland. Meanwhile existing brand partner Michael Kors signed and opened boutiques in Hede Fashion Outlet outside Gothenburg, Landquart and Sevilla Fashion Outlet and upsized its stores in Vila do Conde Porto Fashion Outlet and Batavia Stad Fashion Outlet in Amsterdam. 

Batavia Stad also opened the first-ever Radley boutique on the European mainland and Cavalli Class’s debut with the company saw it opening there, as well as at Zweibrucken Fashion Outlet near Frankfurt.

Another important development has been the “strong interest from existing brand partners in taking up additional space on a temporary basis and other flexible terms”. That's perhaps no surprise in a year in which many brands have had plenty of surplus stock to shift, as well as having to react nimbly to store closures and reopenings.

Via said Puma and Adidas opened pop-up stores in Wroclaw Fashion Outlet in Poland, “a move which has allowed the brands to outperform and create additional sales without cannibalising their permanent stores in the centre”.