Car shopping in the fast lane
Should the plan succeed, Warsaw Auto Center will be the first of its kind in Poland and among the few auto centers in Europe. It will
be located on a Ghelamco-owned plot in Janki, just outside Warsaw, where the Giacomelli sports goods store used to stand."The concept
does not yet exist on the Polish market and we started planning it in mid-2004," said Bożena Krawczyk, business development manager at
Ghelamco Poland. "You have this typical concept of car selling where every company or dealer has their own outlet, limited to the given
brand, and in the end, when you are buying a car and you want to see more than one brand you have to travel all over the city."
According to Bożena Krawczyk the location is not a coincidence, as Janki has already established itself as a well-proven retail
location and destination.
"We believe, and the initial feedback from the market confirms, that the location is very good and that it's actually great added value
to the existing Janki retail-park concept," she added.
When completed, the 20,000 sqm center will include 16 to 17 different car dealerships, with additional retail and services such as
banking, insurance providers and car accessories stores. Different car brands will be located in the wings of the two-storey center.
Krawczyk is quick to point out that ideally the offer would range from up-market to mid-range car brands. The top floor will host a
Formula-1 auto-themed restaurant.
But the investor does not want the concept to become dubbed as the next 'mall' on the Warsaw retail scene.
"Warsaw Auto Center is not a mass-market product, that's why I'm not happy referring to it as a shopping center because from the
architectural as well as from the management point of view it is supposed to be a niche product," explained Bożena Krawczyk. "This is a
product that will arouse significant interest from people not only from Warsaw but also from all over the country because you do not
have a similar concept anywhere nearby."
With the construction of Warsaw Auto Center scheduled to take approximately six months, the developer is hoping to open the center
later this year. Once opened to the public the center will be run to create customer interest on a regular basis with events,
exhibitions and celebrity visits.
"That would help the Center to build an identity," said Krawczyk. "Events would create interest and attract people first of all because
they need a car and second of all because it will be a good way to spend their free time and look at what is currently available on the
market."
Jeroen van der Toolen, Ghelamco Poland's managing director, points out that the auto-center concept has already been successfully
introduced in the United States and several European countries.
"Due to a recent change in the law, one car dealer is now allowed to sell a variety of brands," he said. "Also, a dealership license in
an EU country means one can do business on the other EU markets. You also see that there are more and more international dealer
networks. In terms of the Warsaw Auto Center, some of the importers are getting directly involved in the concept."
So what has prompted a developer that has yet to dabble in retail investments to undertake such a challenge on a market where car sales
have actually been falling, while auto prices are steadily climbing?
"The retail market already seems saturated as it is," said Bożena Krawczyk. "We are not a retail developer or operator so creating
something different was our main target and I believe we have something that we will be able to surprise people with. On the office
market you win tenants because of flexibility but here the idea is to create something completely different, yet popular at the same
time. If you are the first to do something like that, the chances that you will succeed are also much higher."
be located on a Ghelamco-owned plot in Janki, just outside Warsaw, where the Giacomelli sports goods store used to stand."The concept
does not yet exist on the Polish market and we started planning it in mid-2004," said Bożena Krawczyk, business development manager at
Ghelamco Poland. "You have this typical concept of car selling where every company or dealer has their own outlet, limited to the given
brand, and in the end, when you are buying a car and you want to see more than one brand you have to travel all over the city."
According to Bożena Krawczyk the location is not a coincidence, as Janki has already established itself as a well-proven retail
location and destination.
"We believe, and the initial feedback from the market confirms, that the location is very good and that it's actually great added value
to the existing Janki retail-park concept," she added.
When completed, the 20,000 sqm center will include 16 to 17 different car dealerships, with additional retail and services such as
banking, insurance providers and car accessories stores. Different car brands will be located in the wings of the two-storey center.
Krawczyk is quick to point out that ideally the offer would range from up-market to mid-range car brands. The top floor will host a
Formula-1 auto-themed restaurant.
But the investor does not want the concept to become dubbed as the next 'mall' on the Warsaw retail scene.
"Warsaw Auto Center is not a mass-market product, that's why I'm not happy referring to it as a shopping center because from the
architectural as well as from the management point of view it is supposed to be a niche product," explained Bożena Krawczyk. "This is a
product that will arouse significant interest from people not only from Warsaw but also from all over the country because you do not
have a similar concept anywhere nearby."
With the construction of Warsaw Auto Center scheduled to take approximately six months, the developer is hoping to open the center
later this year. Once opened to the public the center will be run to create customer interest on a regular basis with events,
exhibitions and celebrity visits.
"That would help the Center to build an identity," said Krawczyk. "Events would create interest and attract people first of all because
they need a car and second of all because it will be a good way to spend their free time and look at what is currently available on the
market."
Jeroen van der Toolen, Ghelamco Poland's managing director, points out that the auto-center concept has already been successfully
introduced in the United States and several European countries.
"Due to a recent change in the law, one car dealer is now allowed to sell a variety of brands," he said. "Also, a dealership license in
an EU country means one can do business on the other EU markets. You also see that there are more and more international dealer
networks. In terms of the Warsaw Auto Center, some of the importers are getting directly involved in the concept."
So what has prompted a developer that has yet to dabble in retail investments to undertake such a challenge on a market where car sales
have actually been falling, while auto prices are steadily climbing?
"The retail market already seems saturated as it is," said Bożena Krawczyk. "We are not a retail developer or operator so creating
something different was our main target and I believe we have something that we will be able to surprise people with. On the office
market you win tenants because of flexibility but here the idea is to create something completely different, yet popular at the same
time. If you are the first to do something like that, the chances that you will succeed are also much higher."
