Media & Insights

MG motors into St David's

1 September 2017

The St David’s Partnership, owners of St David’s in Cardiff, one of the UK’s premier retail and leisure destinations, confirms that celebrated British car brand MG, is to launch its first retail boutique experience outside London at St David’s in early September, the first of its type in Wales.

In conjunction with regional dealer Nathaniel Cars, the new 1,610 sq ft store located in Cathedral Walk, will showcase models from the iconic motoring brand’s range of cars, bringing automotive retail into a bustling shopping centre and connecting consumers with this much loved British brand.  

The new store will be emblematic of Nathaniel MG’s passion for “Reinventing your car buying experience.” The dynamic store design, carried out by Nathaniel MG, will incorporate a video screen wall at the far end of the store, interactive iPad stations and an informal seating area.  A collection of the range will be on display including MG3’s and the MGGS for visitors to experience and interact with.  Product geniuses will also be on hand to help customers at every stage of the car buying journey, from booking a test drive, arranging a part exchange, and financing purchases. 

Matthew Cheyne, Head of Sales & Marketing, MG Motor UK Ltd commented: “We are delighted to have secured a prime position within a leading retail location to launch our second store concept in the UK and allowing us to introduce the brand to a completely new audience.  Our interactive store will offer so much more than just a showroom, and we look forward to joining the centres collection of impressive retail brands, and interacting with loyal MG enthusiasts and new converts from across the region.”

Speaking on behalf of the St David’s Partnership, a joint venture between Landsec and intu, Colin Flinn, regional managing director at intu, added: “MG’s regional debut is an excellent addition to our portfolio of retailers.  Following the success of previous car pop-ups at St David’s, which generated a fantastic response from shoppers, MG will be very popular for our catchment and appeal to the Cardiff consumer.  We are delighted to be at the forefront of this exciting new development within car retail and are looking forward to MG unveiling its new automotive store format here soon.”   

The news follows the announcement that Byron is to launch its first restaurant in Wales at the centre.  This was followed by YO! Sushi and TGI Friday’s unveiling newly-refurbished restaurants following investment in their successful St David’s sites last month. 

St David’s is anchored by the largest John Lewis outside London, Debenhams and Marks & Spencer, and also has 200 other shops and restaurants.  There is a particular focus on mixing national and international retailers, such as H&M, Victoria’s Secret, Primark, New Look and River Island, with premium brands and independents.  These include Hugo Boss, Seasalt, Radley, Vivienne Westwood and Jo Malone.  The dining offer at St David’s is equally impressive, with brands such as Jamie’s Italian, wagamama and Wahaca.

JLL and Cushman & Wakefield are letting agents for the St David’s Partnership. Calan Retail represented Nathaniel Cars trading as MG.

Notes to editors

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 3 performing store. Recent brands also include Barburrito, Scotts, Kiko, Eat, size? and Wahaca.

During peak times of the year, over one million customers visit the Welsh shopping capital each week, spending over £1 million daily.
www.stdavidscardiff.com

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 attracts customers, delivering enhanced footfall, dwell time and loyalty. This helps our retailer’s flourish, driving occupancy and income growth.

A FTSE 100 company, we own many of the UK's largest and most popular retail destinations, including nine of the top 20, with super regional centres such as intu Trafford Centre and intu Lakeside and vibrant city centre locations from Newcastle to Watford.

We are focused on delivering against four strategic objectives: optimising the performance of our assets to deliver attractive long term total property returns, delivering our UK development pipeline to add value to our portfolio, leveraging the strength of our brand and seizing the opportunity in Spain to create a business of scale.

We are committed to our local communities; our centres support over 120,000 jobs representing about 4% of the total UK retail workforce, and to operating with environmental responsibility.

Our success creates value for our retailers, investors and the communities we serve.
www.intugroup.co.uk

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 23.2 million sq ft of real estate and a portfolio valued at £14.4 billion, we own and manage some of the most successful and recognisable assets in the country. 
 
In London, our portfolio totals more than £8.3 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 16.7 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. 

Contact

Nick Thornton at Aver on +44 (0) 7808 940 208, or via email at nickthornton@aver.uk.com 

Amy Cassidy at Aver on +44 (0) 7786 025 417, or via email at amycassidy@aver.uk.com