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A shopping center comprises of one or more buildings that combine together to form a complex where members of public can buy and sell goods and services. These complexes usually house various merchandising units, interconnected walkways, and escalators linking various floors as well as a dedicated car parking area. A shopping center is also known as a shopping mall or simply mall, shopping arcade, or shopping precinct depending on the country. Generally shopping malls are designed to be pedestrian friendly so that the shoppers can walk and browse stores without any interference from traffic. Modern shopping centers may be partially or completely covered, and usually extend to large areas and walkways leading upto main exits.

Most shopping centers generally have a distinctive layout that consists of an anchor or a primary store which is supported by a number of chain stores. Apart from these, there are plenty of amenities for shoppers and visitors such as adequate public restrooms, entertainment facilities, a devoted food court and an adjoining parking place. Shopping center development organizations may also design community shopping centers in a strip mall format which is presently the most commonly applied blueprint for malls. These are usually car friendly centers with an integrated parking for visitors and staff in addition to the easy access points to public transport and pedestrian walk ways. Strip malls are usually service oriented containing a grocery store, home appliances, laundry service and dry cleaners and sometimes also a pharmacy, automated cash machine and small restaurant. Setting up of a successful and a popular shopping centre involves getting all the vital constituents such as location, research, tenant mix, cost, and demographics faultlessly right. Location is one of the most important components, as it is said to be responsible for drawing 90% of a shopping mall’s business. Some of the key factors that one must keep in mind are the size of population in the surrounding area, purchasing power of the population, accessibility and public amenities, and concept of the mall.

Having a healthy amount of upcoming and existing housing facilities in close proximity of the proposed shopping centre is also helpful. Retail Business Management for the private and commercial clients is usually undertaken by dedicated real estate service providers. Shopping mall management is no exception and there are numerous agencies and businesses which cater to the special requirements of real estate investors and offer them a range of solution to improve and manage their property portfolio. These services are often delivered bespoke to the individual requirement of businesses depending on their portfolio and preferences. By pooling the resources and knowledge of experienced real estate service providers entrepreneurs can significantly benefit and grow their business not only locally but also globally.