Media & Insights

Lovisa and Virgin Holidays travel to St David's

6 December 2017

The St David’s Partnership, owners of St David’s in Cardiff, one of the UK’s premier retail and leisure destinations, has today announced that Virgin Holidays and Lovisa are the latest brands to open at St David’s on Cathedral Walk.

In November, the UK’s leading worldwide holiday company, Virgin Holidays, unveiled their first standalone Welsh store on Cathedral Walk. The new 1,660 sq ft flagship v-room store concept offers experiential travel and holiday options to a range of global destinations including the Caribbean and the USA. Providing customers with a unique and immersive holiday experience in-store, shoppers can sample the sights, sounds and tastes of their dream holiday before they book. Designed by Your Studio and delivered by Resolution Interiors, the interior resembles a luxurious airport lounge to provide a relaxing environment. Unique features include a complimentary bar, a children’s area and a selection of Virgin’s Upper Class and Premium Economy seats for customers to try. A virtual reality rollercoaster specifically designed for the Cardiff store completes the offer, transporting customers from Cardiff to Las Vegas and back, via space.

Global fashion accessories brand, Lovisa, also joined Virgin Holidays on Cathedral Walk, selecting St David’s for their first store in Wales. After launching their first site in April 2010, Lovisa can be found in 14 countries throughout the world with over 300 stores. Taking inspiration from couture runways and current street style, their new St David’s location, situated adjacent to The Perfume Shop, delivers fashion-forward accessories at affordable prices. A team of Lovisa stylists are on hand in-store to bring customers expert styling advice on current trends, styling techniques and personalised tips. The new Lovisa trades from a 620 sq ft store on the ground floor.

Speaking on behalf of the St David’s Partnership, a joint venture between Landsec and intu, Colin Flinn, regional managing director - west, commented on the additions: “The Cathedral Walk line-up at St David’s continues to thrive, with numerous exciting new brands taking space. We’re confident Lovisa and Virgin Holidays will follow in the footsteps of the successful MG boutique which opened earlier this year, and further add to the engaging retail offer.”

Peter Barker, UK Property Director at Lovisa, added: “The opening of our new St David’s location is an exciting milestone for Lovisa. We look forward to our continued partnership with the joint owners of St David’s to deliver the ultimate fashion accessories destination in Cardiff, and share our wide range of beautiful designs, materials and expert finishing techniques with shoppers at St David’s.”

In addition, Kurt Geiger is relocating within St David’s, opening a 2,140 sq ft store on the Grand Arcade adjacent to Kids around in December. The scheme has welcomed a string of recent openings including Oliver Bonas, CK Underwear and Kids around. Superdry also reopened its refurbished store this autumn, featuring the brand’s first dedicated Superdry Sport entrance in the UK.

Cushman & Wakefield advised the St David’s Partnership. JLL represented Virgin Holidays and Lovisa represented themselves.

Ends

For further information, please contact:

Nick Thornton at Aver on 07808 940208, or via email at nickthornton@aver.uk.com

Amy Cassidy at Aver on 07786 025417, or via email at amycassidy@aver.uk.com

About St David’s Cardiff

St David’s shopping centre provides over 1.4 million sq ft of retail and leisure space and over 180 stores. Since opening its doors in 2009, it has put Cardiff firmly on the map as one of the UK’s best shopping cities.

St David’s has secured a continuous stream of high calibre retailer and restaurant openings over the past five years, including many brands that have made their debut or introduced new concept stores into Wales such as H&M opening its top three performing store. Recent brands also include Barburrito, Scotts, Kiko, size? and Wahaca.

St David’s is anchored by Marks & Spencer, Debenhams and the largest John Lewis outside of London. The centre is also home to a mix of national and international retailers, such as Primark, New Look and River Island, in addition to premium brands and independents. These include Hugo Boss, Radley, Vivienne Westwood and Jo Malone. The dining offer at St David’s is equally impressive, with brands such as Jamie’s Italian and wagamama.

About intu

intu is the UK's leading owner, manager and developer of prime regional shopping centres with a growing presence in Spain. We are passionate about creating uniquely compelling experiences, in centre and online, that attract customers, delivering enhanced footfall, dwell time and loyalty.

We own many of the UK's largest and most popular retail destinations with super regional centres such as intu Trafford Centre and intu Lakeside and vibrant city centre locations from Newcastle to Watford.

We are committed to our local communities, our centres support over 120,000 jobs representing about 3% of the total UK retail workforce, and to operating with environmental responsibility.

About Landsec

At Landsec, we believe great places are for people to experience and are made with the experience of great people. As the UK’s largest listed commercial property company, with 23.7 million sq ft of real estate and a portfolio valued at £14.2 billion, we own and manage some of the most successful and recognisable assets in the country.

In London, our portfolio totals more than £7.8 billion, and consists of 6.5 million sq ft of real estate. From the world-famous Piccadilly Lights to the transformation of Victoria, SW1, we deliver exceptional experiences for the businesses and people that live and work in, and visit, the capital.

In Retail, across our 17.2 million sq ft of assets, we create outstanding experiences for customers and guests alike. Combined with the strength and resilience of our portfolio, this means we regularly outperform industry benchmarks for footfall and sales. We offer more than convenience and choice, recognising that memorable destinations are key to attracting the shoppers and retailers of today, and tomorrow.

We also aim to lead our industry in critical long-term issues – from diversity and community employment, to carbon and climate resilience. Everything we do is grounded in experience and begins with people. We deliver value for our shareholders, great experiences for our customers and positive change for our communities. At Landsec, everything is experience.