A total of 201 000 sq m of mall retail space is under construction in Bulgaria.

The increase in the amount of shopping mall area was of 138 500 sq m in the first six months of 2007, Colliers International research showed.

The increase could be attributed to the launching of the construction of several new big shopping projects.

The construction of three major shopping centres began in 2007. Carrefour Mall and Serdika Center were initiated in Sofia and Mall Stara Zagora in the town of the same name.

According to Colliers, the coastal city of Varna was “shaping up as a very competitive market for shopping center developers and investors with five projects located within a 1-km radius.” Two of the developments, Pfohe Mall and Mall Varna, were to be ready by 2008.

Colliers Bulgaria general manager Ivan Velkov said that Varna was “attracting a lot of attention from developers in all segments.”

Atanas Garov, managing director of Colliers Bulgaria, said that retail in Bulgaria continues its rapid expansion

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