Trafford Centre deals boost CSC

CAPITAL Shopping Centres has said that key openings at the Trafford Centre – including a new flagship Banana Republic store – had helped to increase occupancy levels across its portfolio.

In a trading update covering the three months since July, the retail property giant said that it had achieved an occupancy level of 97% across its centres.

The business owns four of the top six shopping centres in the UK following its £1.6bn acquisition of the Trafford Centre from Peel in January. It said that footfall across its estate had increased by 2% year-on-year, and that 56 new leases had been agreed during the quarter.

“At Trafford Centre, a series of openings has further improved the retail offer. M&S and Debenhams have opened extensions to their stores, Dune has opened a new flagship store and Banana Republic has opened its first stand alone store north of London,” the company said.

Chief executive officer David Fischel said: “CSC remains well positioned through its focus on leading and high quality regional shopping centres in the UK.”