UAE’s Majid Al Futtaim to launch City Centre Al Zahia in March 2021

UAE’s retail conglomerate Majid Al Futtaim has slated March 2021 to open its upcoming mall in Sharjah, it announced on May 11.

The decision to defer the opening of the new mall – City Centre Al Zahia – has been taken in light of the ongoing pandemic. Furthermore, it will also accord tenant partners increased time to prepare for their new stores effectively.

The mall was originally scheduled to open in 2020, according to its website.

Shireen El Khatib, chief executive officer at Majid Al Futtaim – Shopping Malls Business Unit, said: “From the day we open the doors of City Centre Al Zahia, our ambition is to offer a compelling retail and entertainment experience to the Northern Emirates community. This ambition is shared by all of our tenants, and as an industry leader, we feel it is our responsibility to support them in any way we can towards achieving this shared goal.”

“In line with our delivery commitments, the construction of the mall has run to schedule since we first broke ground. However, in light of the global changes that have impacted the retail industry, we have taken the prudent decision to revise the opening date of City Centre Al Zahia in the best interest of our customers and tenants. We remain confident that City Centre Al Zahia will become a landmark destination in the Northern Emirates and a signature addition to the Majid Al Futtaim family.”

City Centre Al Zahia spans 136,200 sqm of gross leasable space, and will become the largest mall in the Northern Emirates once inaugurated. The upcoming mall will provide a mix of more than 360 new and established brands.

The revised opening date is the latest measure in what has been a series of initiatives undertaken by Majid Al Futtaim since the beginning of the pandemic in support of its tenant partners across all shopping malls. These initiatives include the waiving of rental payments, whilst malls were closed. It has also launched two new online shopping platforms for the UAE to enable tenants to reach customers and continue trading. This includes the ‘Trends At Your Doorstep’ initiative recently launched by Mall of The Emirates, and ‘Marketplace’ for other Majid Al Futtaim malls.

Read: UAE retailer Majid Al Futtaim launches online marketplace through Carrefour

In March, the company temporarily reassigned more than 1,000 employees from other business divisions to its Carrefour business.

Read more: UAE retailer Majid Al Futtaim to reassign over 1,000 employees to Carrefour