Ruuun! a shopping centre is opening. Admittedly, in these bleak economic times that doesn't happen very much but most seemed genuinely surprised at the sheer numbers of people arriving for Westfield Stratford City's opening. As one breathy shopper was quoted as saying: "I just wanted to be part of history." Quite.Love it or hate it, there was only one story yesterday - the opening of Europe's largest urban shopping centre. Here's what the press had to say about it.
The Telegraph's coverage centred on the fact that over 100, 000 people attended the opening and some shops were forced to open early but pointed out that figures were affected by the fact that Forever 21 was giving away goods. It said £4m was spent in the first few hours
The Daily Mail also commented on the sheer numbers of people in a shopping centre big enough to have it's own postcode (It's the Eastenders ficitional E20 if you were wondering). It said coach companies were already pioneering trips to Stratford City from France.
"In truth there's nothing remarkable about WSC apart from its size. It's clean, shiny and covered in glass like every other shopping centre. But it's not about what it looks like, it's about what it represents for East London - hope and pride."
"A hermetic citadel of commercial seduction, Westfield Stratford City will delight those for whom shopping for luxury VIP goods is a way of life and sadden those for whom so much brightly packaged global design is no way to plan the future of a city nor to greet visitors to the Olympic Games."
The Independent questions the aspirational brands in the centre saying:
"By appealing so conspicuously to middle-class and aspirational shoppers, Westfield Stratford City speaks to those that the Olympics will act as Pied Piper to, rather than those who live there already."
In a separate article the newspaper puts paid the suggestion that it is the wrong time to open a shopping centre.
The FT leads on the fact the centre is 95% let but says however, increased security concerns and road closures during the event [the Olympics] will create a logistical nightmare for retailers.
City AM said the centre looked superb but warned: " Still, the hope of Stratford Westfield as a truly international shopping destination seems bold, given that the crucial decision to stop any international train services at Stratford has yet to be taken, and it will be 2013 before any trains could stop there."
And there were plenty comment away from the UK press
The Wall Street Journal focused on the fact the opening cemented Westfield's position as the dominant mall owner on four continents.
The Irish Times said that while crowds flocked to the centre it was more for the opening day giveaways
Even The Washington Post was there saying the mall is airy and bright, "capturing the sunshine in a country where it rains a lot".
The trade press were also present with Caterer commenting on the hundreds of hospitality jobs it brought to the capital
Retail Week said customer traffic is much stronger in some parts of the centre than others and the Great Eastern Market hosting John Lewis and Waitrose will have to work harder for shoppers. It added that the outside street area was disappointing
And of course Estates Gazette was there in force. We have news, views, pictures, videos and podcasts on our dedicated Westfield Stratford City page (£) all videos and podcasts can be accessed free at www.estatesgazette.com
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