Trio of top brands for shopping village
New store openings to bring 30 jobs at Boulevard
TWO top sportswear labels and a global footwear brand will create 30 jobs when they open up at a recently rebranded outlet village this summer.
Adidas, Asics and footwear and accessories name Kurt Geiger will add a new fashion element to the The Boulevard in Banbridge.
Together they represent a £900,000 investment in the centre, which changed its name from The Outlet to The Boulevard last month.
And since the rebrand, the centre has reported a 26% boost in footfall.
Chris Nelmes, centre manager at The Boulevard, said: “We are continuing to make strides in our commitment to providing the premier outlet shopping experience in Northern Ireland through the introduction of three new global brands to The Boulevard; Adidas, Asics and Kurt Geiger.
“We want to make sure that we can attract both new and current customers back to the centre time and again as we continue to attract new and exciting retailers in the lifestyle, fashion and food and beverage categories.”
Alastair Coulson, who is the asset and property management director of the Lotus Group — the owner of The Boulevard — said: “This latest significant investment of £900,000 closely follows our centre rebrand and aligns with our continued vision of striving to become a world class outlet shopping destination.
“The addition of these brands is a testament to the confidence we have in the reshaping of The Boulevard.
“It is our intention to move quickly forward with further plans and build on our already growing success.”
Asics will arrive at The Boulevard next Friday, May 4, followed by Adidas in June and Kurt Geiger in July.
The new additions join a number of other key new brands which have set up shop there over the past year.
These include Jack And Jones, Ulster Weavers and The Beauty Outlet.
And they join a selection of other well-known brands situ- ated within the centre who have traded over the years, including Nike, Timberland, Calvin Klein, L.K. Bennett, Paul Costelloe and Jaeger.
As well as home and fashion retail outlets with discounts of up to 70% off the recommended retail price, The Boulevard has six food venues including Burger King, Linen Hill Kitchen and Deli and Starbucks.
A £4.5m investment in entertainment also saw the opening of an Ominplex Cinema in 2016.
Originally, The Boulevard opened as The Outlet in 2007 at a cost of £70m.
In January 2016 the Belfast Telegraph revealed that The Outlet and The Junction in Antrim were both to be sold to The Lotus Group in a deal which was thought to be worth around £40m, which made it one of the largest retail transactions that year.
Both centres were marketed together and were originally for sale for around £60m.
The Outlet was owned by West Register — a firm which was set up by Ulster Bank’s parent company RBS in order to manage distressed property assets following the financial crisis.