St. Davids Shopping Centre

According to the planning apps today Michael Kors will be going in the old H & M unit 9at least on the ground floor) -

http://planning.cardiff.gov.uk/online-a ... APR_114838

Armani Exchange is closed. I know St Davids had ambitions to convert this unit into A3 which would lend a certain symmetry to Eastside now that Shake Shack has opened opposite so AA may be going elsewhere in the centre (although I would have thought they would open their new unit first).

Also Blue Inc has closed in the older part of St Davids.

Armani Exchange - wouldn't be surprised if this has just shut down completely. Always looked empty. Cardiff just doesn't seem able to hang on to these types of stores (I'd be interested to know how the equally quiet Hugo Boss and Vivienne Westwood do). In this instance, no great loss, as most of their stuff is quite tacky and overpriced. T-shirts emblazened with big logos retailing at £34.99. Designer label, not designer quality.

Surprised about Blue Inc, although it was never as busy as you might expect for a prime location and a cheap chavvy brand. USC also falls into that category and has got to be at risk.

I rarely saw anyone in there so also doubt that it'll be relocating. A concession in a dept store would be sufficient for Cardiff I reckon.

I guess that AX have managed to shift the lease unless there was a break. Would be surprised if it wasn't to a restaurant. What don't we have?

- Byron
- CAU
- Gaucho (doubt they'd go into a shopping centre)
- Strada (in town)
- Giraffe

The unit may also be split to form a couple of smaller units as in Jack Jones/Vero Moda.

Blue Inc has closed down across the uK INTO LIQUIDATION

I don't think they'll split it. Their planning app for Shake Shack made explicit reference to using these two units as waymarkers for the entrance to Eastside, so I think they will want this unit fronting the Grand Arcade as with Shake Shack.

The contrast of Cardiff with other top retail centres on these higher end brands really is quite stark. We've debated it before - consumer preferences, affluence and size of catchtment area.. I think it must be a bit of all of them. Now I don't shop in these high end places (I'm too tight), but I do find it a bit worrying as it must be telling us something about relative economic performance, in particular, ability to retain ambitious high earners..

I don't think that Cardiff and the greater metropolitan area has the demographic for top end brands. Where in the Valleys or Newport is there wealth? Small pockets of Cardiff and The Vale aren't enough and I'd wager that the most affluent people are older too so wouldn't be dressing up in Armani anyway.

We just don't have the well paid jobs for young professionals which creates the need for expensive brands. Hugo Boss must be an exception to the rule.

Blue Inc has closed down across the uK INTO LIQUIDATION

Their website is still up and running and shows stores in other cities - but the Cardiff store has been removed. And its not in liquidation - it is closing around one quarter of its stores:

http://www.drapersonline.com/news/blue- ... ullarticle

So its not just Cardiff, but the St Davids store clearly was in the bottom quarter of stores when it came to profitability - whether due to low sales, high rent, combination of the two.

Both I reckon, was never very busy and looked horrible. I'm amazed that they've managed to expand as much as they have. Watch this space for Blue Inc going bust..

I contacted St David's via Facebook message asking them about Armani Exchange and they confirmed that A|X have permanently closed. They blamed the closure on a nationwide cutback of stores...

I also asked them about the old H&M unit and they confirmed that a new tenant has been found and is currently in the process of fitting out the store, however they were unable to reveal the name. I guess this supports the claim that VS are opening there?