Zara plans world’s biggest store in Antwerp

Zara has announced it will open its largest store in the world in Antwerp. The Belgian city will soon have a 14,500 sqm Zara store on its main shopping street, Meir.

25 million per year?

The three-storey store would be one of the most expensive real estate deals “in a long time” in Belgian retail, developers Tans Urban Landmarks and Urbicoon claim. CBRE figures say the Meir is the most expensive shopping street in Belgium, with rents averaging 1,700 euros per square metre per year. This would mean that the annual rent would amount to almost 25 million euros – although it has to be said that financial details of the deal have not been made public.

The project is not limited to retail, however: the upper floors will house a 28,000 sqm campus for the management and IT courses of the Karel de Grote Hogeschool. They should open their doors as early as next year.