Harrods Shopping Malls Provide Pleasant Shopping Experience to Visitors

Since last many years, London has remained the best place in the entire United Kingdom to grab the attention of tourists belonging to different parts of the world. Particularly, many people prefer to visit shopping malls of the city to avail pleasant shopping experience and even to enjoy delicious cuisines. Harrods, a London-based shopping center has now become the worldwide famous stores and the popular attractions of tourists in the city of London. This has become possible primary by the wide assortment of many luxury items displayed within the magnificently designed and decorated London shopping malls. Here, you could get the opportunity to buy almost everything starting from some historical dinner plates found during the eighteenth century to wide range of exquisite caviar and eye-catching or giant teddy bears.

Owners of this shopping mall are well aware of the fact that many tourists visiting to the city of London love to enjoy some delicious cuisines and beverages. Therefore, the shopping mall has incorporated an exclusive departmental store named as Food Hall located over the lower portion of the floor. In addition, you will get some other attractions in the form of Crystal Rooms and Egyptian Halls. Specifically, large numbers of visitors have attracted towards the central escalator, decorated and designed by using motives of Egypt. If this is not enough, here you will find well-arranged car parking system and sophisticated security and information systems to maintain security and discipline within the entire property. 

 

According to the statement highlighted from the shopping mall owners and managers, “Harrods continues to astonish and intrigue customers from around the world with first-class service, retail theatre, product quality and an unmatched international brand selection. From its humble beginnings as a grocer and tea merchant in 1834, Harrods continues to go from strength to strength.”

Deal Analysis: What is Teddy Sagi Looking for in London's Camden Market?

"Come be one of 40 million people who visit Camden Market every year. Come and be inspired by the market's clothing shops, the unique design of its houses, the best restaurants in the world that can be found in it and much more! Come and see why Camden has become an attraction for both local visitors and tourists – the place where something is always happening. Camden Market is one of the world's most famous tourist attractions.So come – eat, drink, buy and entertain yourself!"

These words, taken from the website of the most popular retail market in London, second only to the British royal palace and/or Big Ben, explain why one should visit it. A different part of the website includes an online guide for first time visitors on how to tour the market, how to get there (Chalk Farm tube station is highly recommended) and why visitors should "go crazy" and enter one of the Gothic shops that will leave them with a taste for more.

This writer has yet to visit Camden Market, but her colleagues, who have dropped by there during a trip or two to London, explained to her that it is in fact a quintessential London icon that deals with a lot of money and is therefore worth a lot of money.How much is a lot? Well, last Sunday, we all saw how much. Young billionaire Teddy Sagi, the man and the Playtech, purchased the full ownership of the market from his Israeli colleague and his partners for £400 million (NIS 2.4 million –the size of this transaction is irregular in terms of both the Israeli and the British real estate markets). A transaction you cannot remain indifferent to, and not only because Camden Market is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the world.

Kobo, the partner of model Miri Bohadana and by no means a less mysterious billionaire than Sagi, started looking for a buyer about a year and a half ago. His long time partnership with British restaurant tycoon Richard Caring and real estate company Chelsfield Partners had run into difficulties. Each one of these two partners held a quarter of the market, while Kobo held half. The three partners came to the conclusion that that the best thing to do would be to dissolve the partnership and find a buyer for their holdings. They searched and they found Sagi who,in a rare statement to the press, said: "Bebo has invested many resources in developing Camden Market over the past several years, and has established it as one of the leading entertainment and tourism areas in London and in the entire world. He has spent years finding what he considered to be the best buyer and I thank him for choosing me as his successor in this important project".

Kobo, as we may remind you, bought the market 20 years ago for what, in hindsight, turned out to be a cheap price. Years later, he added the two above mentioned partners. And now, thanks to Sagi, he is expected to get a "coupon" of £200 million (NIS 1.2 billion) and position himself as one of the most liquid Israeli billionaires.

A Very Economic Transaction

Before explaining why Sagi bought Camden Market and what economic potential he sees in it, we will digress for a moment and explain what Camden Market is (at least for those of us who haven’t been there yet).

According to a "Globes" examination, Kobo and his partners owned the market through a holding company which is registered in the Virgin Islands (a popular tax haven) and which is called CamdenMarket Holdings Corporation. The company, which was created through the amalgamation of subsidiaries in England, focuses on two main activities: the Stables Market (the corporate name of Camden Market) and Camden Lock Village – the real estate project that Sagi intends to develop next to the market itself (see details below).

Camden Market started in the 19^th century, but has been operating in its currentform for "only" 40 years.It is situated, as its name implies, in the London Borough of Camden, in the northern part of central London. It borders both Westminster City (home of the Houses of Parliament) and London City to the south. This location has turned it, almost naturally, to one of the most popular tourist attractions in London in particular and in Europe in general. And this suggests a very economic business. In Camden Market there are over 1,400 shops (clothes, shoes, home accessories and what not), stalls, yoga centers, art galleries, bars, restaurants and clubs. In short, if you enter Camden Market you will most probably find what you are looking for, and, while you're at it,you will spend some money and maybe meet a celeb to take a selfie with.

And why? Well, as it turns out, one of the prestigious and popular restaurants in the market, called Gilgamesh, is frequented by movie/TV actors such as Natalie Portman and David Schwimmer (Ross from "Friends"), and Chelsea FC players. Every year, some 40 million people visit the market (100,000 a day on average, and as many as 450,000 on summer weekends).

The market is run by a managing company owned by the holding company, and every inhabitant (i.e. owner of a property such as a shop or a restaurant) pays a weekly or monthly rent. As is well known, Camden Markethasa very high collection rate when compared to the normal practice in the British commercial property market, and the managing company supplies the inhabitants with security guard servicesand cleaning services,as well as utilities such as gas, electricity, water, etc.

According to information given to "Globes" by theproject managers, Camden Market's annual revenue is of around £20 million, mostly from rent. In the coming year, a yearly sum of £10 million will be added through the population of free commercial areas; Sagiis also planning to realize the annual revenue potential of £3.5 million from selling artistic advertisement surfaces, unique to Camden Market. The waiting list for a trading spot (i.e. for a food stall or a clothes shop), at least according to the market's website, is long; very long.

By the way, a few of the market inhabitantsare giant companies that have already understood the market's potential, and subsequently located their head offices in it (e.g. MTV Europe TV channel and Getty Images photo agency). Even Google has built a 100,000 sqm complex in the complex.

The Property Will Be Worth Twice the Investment

Sagi, and this is no secret, does not usually buy a property without high growth potential or one that is sold for a deep discount. Camden Market is indeed a lucrative and growing business, but Sagimainly bought it because of his plans for its future development, which are the second part of the holding company's activities – Camden Lock Village.

This complex, as its name implies, is intended to turn Camden Market from a retail market area into some sort of a city within a city, according to its managers. Sagi, as mentioned in his statement, is planning to invest £200 million in developing the complex, which is expected to be ready in early 2018. Camden Lock Village will sprawl over an area of 55,000 sqm, including a 15,000 sqmdesignated for commercial use (2,000 businesses; there are already 5,000 on the waiting list), 170 housing units, 3 large commercial areas and complexes for art, food, cafés, restaurants and even a school, that will be built by September 2016. According to a publicity video, additional revenue from rent from this complex may reach £100 million a year.

As for the existing complex, Camden Market:Sagi is going to make a capital expenditure (capex) in order to increase revenues. These investments will be made possible, among other things, by extending opening times.The businesses in the complex are currently open for eight hours a day on average (from 10am to 6pm) and the goal is to change thisto a 12 hour workday or more, so that the complex becomes an attraction for local visitors and tourists for most hours of the day and for all days of the year. Lengthening the workday will increase the managing company's revenue from rent, since the businesses' turnover will be bigger.

But Sagi does not plan to settle only for lengthening the workday. As an almost serial internet entrepreneur, he plans, as mentioned in his statements, to "realizeCamden Market's potential by using innovative technologies that will create an advanced experience for residents, shop owners and visitors".

What does this mean in practical terms? Well, most of the payments at Camden Market are done in cash,and not necessarily with credit cards. One of Sagi's first goals is to allow businesses (especially shops) to accept credit cards, thereby increasing revenue and improving customer experience. Moreover, the managers of the complex are planning to install identification systems to help visitors navigate between the many different places of business in the market. At the same time, this will allow businesses to position themselves in the right place within the complex in order to increase their turnover. In fact, Sagi wants to makeCamden Market much more digital, including by establishing an e commerce network, which will allow businesses to market their products online and create a continuing shopping experience for the visitors, even after their actual, physical visit at the complex is over.

It is worth mentioning that Sagi owns private e commerce companies and even a payment company which is about to be floated on AIM (London Stock Exchange). It is therefore possible that he will use these companies' technologies in Camden Market. He may also start something new and/or buy other technologies for the purpose of developing the market.

These investments obviously require a lot of cash, and according to the project managers,Sagi intends to realize the development plans while using his own capital,without increasing the debt. According to a news item published last July in British real estate magazine Property Week, the entire project (including the existing, active market) was given a bank loan of £225 millionfrom the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, which was supposed to have been paid off this June. In January, the loan was converted, through refinancing, to an identical loan – from the Japanese bank Nomura. According to the project managers, it is financed at a relatively low LTV ratio (loan to value: the ratio of the debt to the value of the asset for which the loan was taken), because the value of the finished project in its entirety is estimated at £1.5 billion, including the existing Camden Market and Camden Lock Village – once building is completed. What does this mean? It means that Sagi estimates that the property he has acquired will be worth at least two times the value of his full investment in it.

Until this happens, Sagi, at least according to his statement, plans to "find similar locations around the world and take part in their development as well", or as Leonard Cohen put it (with the required changes): First we take London, then we take (fill in the blank).

Enjoy Supercomputer Event at the Drake Circus Shopping Mall

This time Supercomputer event referred as the Ant and Dec event has set to arrive into the Plymouth. Supercomputer is the popular and hit program on ITV, which will launch at the popular mall of United Kingdom named as Drake Circus shopping mall. This is the single stop for Supercomputer devices, travelling in downward and upwards direction in the entire part of United Kingdom to allow public members in winning the trip of their lifetimes to the city of Florida. Here, the supercomputer, along with the team members will intend to enable and accumulate many people for participation with the advanced Supercomputer. 

However, since this is one of the filmed events, people would likely face some delays caused by crew breaks and film processes, which are essential components for the whole day. The computer devices placed within shopping malls would determine the actual length, up to which participants will get the opportunity to communicate or interact with the instrument and it will vary in between different individuals. Interaction in this case will start from the small duration equal to 20 seconds to higher as 20 minutes. 

According to the statement given by Greg Lumley, the central director of Drake Circus, “We are very excited to bring the Supercomputer into the centre for our shoppers to enjoy. It is here for a number of hours allowing enough time for families to come along and join in the fun. We expect it to be quite busy, so be prepared for a wait if you are planning to perform, however there are limited spaces.”  Read more from here. 

Drake Circus Shopping Mall located in Plymouth is the most popular and frequently visiting shopping center of West Country in UK. The mall comprises of more than 70 different and topmost UK brands. Here, visitors would expect to find many big stores under a single roof. Biggest brands will include Primark, Marks and Spencer, Topshop, Superdry and lots more. 

Other than collections of fashionable and trendy items, owners and operators of this exclusive mall have given their biggest contribution in the installation of advanced security systems and voice solutions into its different parts of the property. Hence, whether you visit the center to enjoy special promos, to participate in supercomputers event and to enjoy delicious food, you could expect to achieve efficient levels of safety in different parts of the UK property. 

British Museum Helps To Raise the England Economy

UK is full of popular amazing destinations which attract Millions of Tourists every year and also helping country to raise the Economy from foreigner visitors. Especially London is full of attractions list of country’s most popular sites and at the capital received impressive 12 percent increase in foreigner visitors, and it got increased after 2012 Olympics. The British Museums has got 20 percent more visitors from 2013, the attractions were Aztec gold from Pompeii and Herculaneum and several other artifacts which have been attracted the visitors from different countries. This Museum has been Britain’s one of the most popular attractions for last couple of years. London has more than 12 most attractive visited sites in Britain and all of them are registered to Association of Leading Visitor Attractions based Doors Report published in 2013.

Helen Grant, Tourism Minister toTelegraph said “The UK has a huge amount to offer tourists, from world-class museums, fantastic sport, great theatre and warm, welcoming people. It is fantastic news for the tourism sector that our top attractions received a boost in visitor numbers in 2013 and the Government will continue to support the industry and promote Britain to the world as a great place to visit and do business with. 2014 is sure to be a momentous year seeing the 450th anniversary of the birth of Shakespeare, therefore we are delighted that Shakespeare's Globe.”

Kensington’s most loved venues in London are the Science Museum and V&A both attracting more than 3 Million visitors throughout the year. Another is the national Museum of Scotland luring almost 1.77 Million visitors from capital to outside of London. In general people visits to British venue are bumped up to 6 percent on which England and Scotland both adding about 5 percent. Overall nice summer weather had helped to add more eight % rise in visitor visit to outside of attractions in Britain.

Brixton Market-Popular Street Market of South London

Since last many years, street markets of London have remained center of attractions for tourists and worldwide visitors. One such market is Brixton Market, which comprises of a street market located at the central portion of Brixton or southern part of London. The entire street market surrounds the rebranded Brixton Village incorporating some popular arcades, such as Market Row Arcade, Reliance Arcade and Granville Arcade. Similar to any other London markets, such as Covent Market, Borough Market and Bebo Kobo Camden Market, this market has now become the popular street market in United Kingdom. 

Contents of the Market

The entire market is involved in selling of various types of merchandises and foods. However, many tourists worldwide prefer to visit the street market for enjoying Caribbean and African produce, which would reflect the diversity in the entire community of Brixton and various surrounding areas of Lambeth. In addition, if you are fond of collecting vintage clothes and several other types of vintage items, you should definitely choose this market. 

Facilities Advent in the Market

Since the street market located at the southern portion of London City is the frequently visited shopping market of the country, so Lambeth London Borough, responsible for managing the street market has put its best possible efforts to assure safety of people within the premise. In addition, with the awareness of retailing and marketing professionals towards technology, management personnel have recommended for the application of advanced security and voice solutions to implement in different parts of the market. Since, the solutions are based on advanced technology; visitors will expect to avail best possible security within the area. “Rummage through and pick up second-hand stuff on all the flea market stalls. You will find antiques, furniture, art, jewelry, books, ceramics; collectables and many more.” Get details of the market from here.

British Museum Hosts Vikings: Life and Legend Exhibition

This time, reports related to the British Museum highlighted that exhibition creators of the museum would host its Vikings: Life and Legend Exhibition for one more time from this Thursday, which would continue to go on until 22^nd of June. This is the first and the most popular museum of United Kingdom hosting major exhibition on Vikings for long duration of about 30 years. 

Even the museum/exhibition center is intending to bring the entire exhibition into various cinema screens in the month of April. Vikings Live will incorporate burial of torch-lit ship within the forecourt. In addition, the entire exhibition would feature large numbers of new and innovative archaeological discoveries and objects, which most of the people have never ever observed in any of the counties, cities and suburbs of United Kingdom. 

Rosklide 6 is known as the giant Viking ship, which people have ever found in this world. Currently, this has become the lifeblood of the entire exhibition go on in the British Museum. The ship exhibited big size of 37 meters in terms of length and has undergone complete reconstruction. In fact, the entire design has one-fifth portion of hull as original timber. Many people are eager to visit the museum to observe the thought provoking, beautiful and the spectacular profound. 

The Viking ship not only embodies martial prowess and nautical ingenuity, but also the beliefs and arts of Vikings. According to the curator of the exhibition named Dr. Gareth Williams, “The Vikings loved gold and silver, while the exhibition is full of splendid items in precious metal and the Vikings loved to show off just how wealthy they were.” Get the similar type of update from here.

British Museum is a frequently visiting place for tourists in London. The museum remains equipped with many advanced security and information systems to maintain safety of tourists and local people visiting on regular basis and on special exhibitions or shows. Since the set up of this UK spot, it has put his efforts to enhance human culture and history. Until now, it has collected outstanding icons and species from 8 million worldwide.