Pleasant but not so hot on the Riviera

“Perhaps we will do some business with Mayland – or maybe buy Amazon?” joked Rafał Sonik, the owner of Gemini Holding, at Poland’s opening party at MAPIC 2017. This whimsical proposal certainly reflected the spirit of the largest shopping centre fair in Europe, where business and pleasure are mixed in perfect proportions. The party, held by Gemini Holding and Mayland Real Estate, was a good warm-up for all the business talk that was to take place over the next two days. According to the organiser of the meeting in Cannes, MAPIC generally attracts around 8,500 guests, 1,000 of whom are investors and 2,100 are tenants. However, this year’s event fell somewhat short in this respect, with several of the regular attendees certain that the number of visitors was by no means a record one. There were also fewer events, cocktail parties, business breakfasts and presentations. This was particularly evident when it came to the Polish market. MAPIC reflects the retai