The restoration of the Tavira Gran Plaza shopping center will close as of today and indefinitely. The owners of the restaurants and cafes in that mall complain about the management of the space and the added difficulties caused by the crisis. Since yesterday, there has been a paper posted in stores warning customers of the closing of doors.
The tenants' problems are related to the “lack of customers, the situation in the country, and the existence of mismatched rents between tenants. There are those who pay 15 euros per square meter and there are those who pay 25 euros per square meter," he explained to Sul Informação one of the elements of the Group of Shopkeepers.
The tenants of the restaurant spaces also want to be given a discount on store leases during the winter months, when, they say, the “already weak” movement of the shopping center drops “by half”.
According to documentation that the Sul Informação had access, there is also disagreement between the tenants and the administration of Tavira Gran Plaza regarding the amounts to be paid for the “common expenses”, since here too there are marked differences in each case.
"We have not been able to pay the rent, since January there have been negotiations with the administration to lower the rent, but this has been intransigent," added the same shopkeeper. Therefore, "if there are no changes, 100 restoration workers may go to unemployment," he guaranteed.
In response to this situation, the shopping center administration issued a statement that the Sul Informação had access, starting by guaranteeing that «the principle of Tavira Gran Plaza has an active, dialogic and flexible management, closely following its tenants and their operations».
«This business is based on a partnership between the owner and the tenant in order to find the best solutions that allow the Shopping Center to succeed as a whole», adds the company.
Tavira Gran Plaza admits that it has been meeting "with the restoration shopkeepers and has been available to analyze each of the operations, as well as to discuss the solution to be adopted on a case-by-case basis."
However, the company adds, "given the specificity of each of the businesses in operation, Tavira Gran Plaza cannot agree to the imposition of a joint solution", thus rejecting the hypothesis of negotiating identical prices for all tenants .
Contrary to the assertion of the tenants that there are "numerous" stores closed, the administration ends its statement assuring that, "since its opening, the Tavira Gran Plaza has received more than eight million visitors, has 105 stores and aims to maintain the quality and a commercial offer suited to the needs of its visitors, having reinforced the variety of stores between 2010 and 2011 by adding to its mix several important international brands, such as Springfield, Mango, Throttleman/Red Oak, Lion of Porches and Code».
Despite this guarantee, the Sul Informação found in the place that the Tavira Gran Plaza, which opened in June 2009, has part of the stores closed. This situation, according to shopkeepers who exploit the catering spaces, as well as the crisis and the “lack of promotion of the shopping centre”, has driven away many customers, further aggravating the situation.
Comments