Kildare Retail LaunchKildare village discount outlet, which opens officially on June 7th, will shortly name Ralph Lauren Polo its anchor tenant. Jack Faganreports
Kildare Village, the discount shopping complex on the outskirts of Kildare town, is set to unveil Polo as its principal anchor tenant in the run-up to the official opening of the centre on June 7th.
The decision by the Ralph Lauren group to put Polo into Kildare will be seen as a strong endorsement of the village which has been trading on a low key basis since last July.
The American luxury retailer is to trade out of one of the largest units of 939sq m (10,000sq ft) and is expected to carry a large range of its clothing, accessories, fragrances and possibly even furniture. Ralph Lauren is one of the largest fashion retailers in the US with sales of almost four billion dollars per year.
Other traders moving into Kildare Village include Reiss Fashions, which also has a store near the junction of Grafton Street and St Stephen's Green in Dublin.
Also moving in will be Wolford, who specialise in bodywear and lingerie.
The key to the success of Kildare Village lies in attracting some of the most sought after luxury brands such as Polo who, like the other traders, will be selling off surplus stock at huge discounts.
Value Retail, the UK company behind the village, has held back on advertising the complex until it has a strong line-up of tenants. However, the facility has been trading quite well, particularly at weekends, when fashion conscious young women are off work.
Fashion traders already on site include Coast, Karen Millen, Levi, Quiksilver, Reebok and Myla lingerie. Jones Lang LaSalle is the letting agent.
Traders pay 12.5 per cent of their turnover in royalties to Value Retail or a minimum of €40 per sq m (€3.71 per sq ft) per month, whichever is the highest. Royalties are generally raised after the first year's trading.
