Westfield, the Australian shopping centre developer, has announced details of four further retailers who have signed up to take space at The Broadway development in Bradford.
Demolition began in 2004, but the economy put strain on the construction sector, as well as consumer spend, so work was abandoned in 2008, leaving behind the ‘Bradford hole‘ – 23 acres of nothingness in the centre of the city.
Three years later in 2011, Westfield revised original plans for a 620, 000 sq ft two-level shopping centre, downsizing to a 550, 000 sq ft project and now, a decade since the work clearing the site began, Westfield is on track to open the £260m Bradford Broadway in just a little over a year‘s time.
The latest announcement of retailers sees a first for the region with Khaadi, a Middle-Eastern fashion and home retailer, announcing Bradford as its flagship store in the North. This follows two successful openings in Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City.
Khaadi will be joined by optical retailer Vision Express, another first for Bradford City Centre, along with Jeweller Goldsmiths and Asian food outlet Yangtze.
Keith Mabbett, Director of Leasing at Westfield, commented:
“These new sign-ups to the Broadway highlight the widespread confidence among leading retailers in both the development and Bradford as an excellent city in which to invest. This new shopping centre will be a source of regeneration for Bradford and will encourage wider investment in the years to come.”
Retail analysts CACI forecast that retail spend will increase by 45% following opening of the Broadway to close to £1bn and footfall in the city centre is expected to increase by nearly 40%.
Rehan Syed, CEO of Khaadi said:
“Bradford is one of the fastest growing cities in the UK and this is exactly why we‘ve chosen it as the site for our first expansion in 2015.”
These latest additions add to the growing list of national retailers who have signed up to the Broadway, including anchor tenants Debenhams, Next and Marks & Spencer, alongside other major brands such as Topshop, New Look, River Island, Costa Coffee and Boots.
The new stores will benefit from the modern retail offering at the state-of-the-art development, including double-height frontages as well as the latest interior design.
The Broadway development will create 2,500 new retail jobs on opening and will deliver a significant boost to the local and regional economy.
