Manubens Lawyers were once again in attendance in Cannes, France at MAPIC – the leading International Retail Property Market Exhibition. The ever growing and popular exhibition was visited by over 8,000 participants from over 80 different countries, providing a more International feel than ever!

Our team of delegates were in attendance mixing in with international like-minded professionals in the same area for an intense two-day period. Our team, once again headed by senior partners Carlos Alonso and Eva Pich, were on hand to advise and explain to senior business professionals about the key business and legal challenges in Spain and how best to successfully overcome them and exploit the market opportunities Spain provides.

MAPIC 2018 Highlights

There were a number of key points that came out of this event for us. To name but a few, they included:

• Receiving positive interest in the Spanish retail market from international companies allowing us to converse with senior executives and understand their expansion plans.
• Providing clients with the opportunity to attend a private event which allowed them to network with members of our Pragma international legal network..
• Advising a leading international retailer on its expansion plans in Catalunya and how best to overcome the permit and licensing challenge.

With the fallout of Brexit and political disharmony in other European regions, Spain, which granted has its own political issues, is becoming a more and more desirable region for the retail industry with the key players embracing the changes we are seeing. These include traditional shopping centres and retail areas transforming into multi-experience urban destinations combining a number of leisure activities such as sports, food, well-being, new technology and healthcare.

This positive sign for the Spanish market is reflected in the expansion of a number of shopping centres throughout Spain. Particularly in the city of Almeria which is seeing the largest residential expansion providing 62,000 sq m of GLA and more than 3,000 parking spaces. Another in Costa del Sol, located in Torremolinos (Málaga), set to redefine the model of shopping centres, providing compelling experiences together with the highest quality offer, due to open in 2021.

If you have any questions or would like to arrange a meeting to discuss your company’s objectives and requirements and learn more about how we can help overcome the key Spanish legal and business challenges then please do not hesitate to contact me.