Sun Plaza mall adds passageway to underground, entertainment club and cinema hall

The developers of Sun Plaza project of Berceni will open the subterranean passageway to Piata Sudului underground station on Wednesday and open the 15 cinema screens on Friday, after having recently launched the Oxygen club, on 2,000 square metres, with billiards, bowling and children's playground. How much will these projects boost traffic and sales? "We've had more than 3 million visitors since opening and an average of around 27,000 people daily," specifies Mircea Curuia, deputy general manager with EMCT, developer of the shopping centre, one of the biggest in Romania, which was opened in late February in Piata Sudului area of Bucharest. The figures are not spectacular, though, as the same Curuia says that a new shopping centre reaches "cruise speed" 18 months after opening. Moreover, the current market situation is not favourable to mall businesses, as people are ever more careful with their money. Under the circumstances, what impact will the new finalised investments have? "It's hard to estimate as this is a completely novel thing," says Yves d'Arfeuille, Sun Plaza manager, referring to the impact of the launch of the 180-metre passageway.