Shopping centres are a complex form of distribution which have become better and better established everywhere in Italy; they have been extremely successful in terms of their ability to expand and ensure consumer satisfaction due to their clever combination of functions connected to purchasing and free-time. A shopping centre is a medium- or large-sized sales organisation where there is a range of stores sharing infrastructures and jointly managed services. Shopping centres also cover the recently developed
Factory Outlet Centres, which were surveyed together with shopping centres because they are similar in structure. Factory Outlet Centres are complex organisations which are designed along the lines of shopping centres: they are located in easily accessible, out-of-town areas and are attractive because they gather together prestigious labels
(Note 1).
This form of distribution is very attractive because it can manage multifunctional centres which can cater for different needs according to age and interests. They combine an ability to drive and guide consumption and provide additional services to do with entertainment and recreation.
In Veneto there were 93 shopping centres with a total area of over 2,800,000 m² in early 2009
(Note 2). The actual sales area was 1,135,000 m²
(Note 3). From 2005 to 2009 the number of shopping centres in Veneto rose by 17 units, or +22.4%, with a 12.4% increase in area and a 19.9% rise in sales area. Shopping centres in Veneto make up 38.3% of the shopping centres in North East Italy and 10.5% of the shopping centres in Italy.
The provinces of Padova, Rovigo, Treviso and Venezia have the largest number of shopping centres in Veneto: 27, 16, 15 and 14 respectively. In terms of sales areas, the provinces of Rovigo, Venezia and Padova are joined by Verona and Vicenza, where the number of shopping centres is lower but their size is larger than the regional average.
Most of the new shopping centres which opened between 2005 and 2009 are located in the province of Padova; the number of shopping centres rose from 16 to 27 with a corresponding 78.9% increase in total area and a 64.9% rise in sales area
(Table 11.5.1).