These are the six new retail parks that will open in Malaga within next three years

Malaga's commercial offer is about to increase significantly as the province is set to gain six large retail parks within the next three years, which will increase the current offer by more than 80,000 square metres.

The new retail parks will be spread throughout the province. The most important of these in terms of size will be the one to be developed on the Salyt site in the city, although new areas will also be built in El Mayorazgo, also in the city, Cártama, Nerja, Alhaurín de la Torre and Estepona.

According to data provided by the Spanish association of shopping centres and retail parks (Asociación Española de Centros y Parques Comerciales - AECC), all of them should open their doors before 2027. Of the five, Estepona is the only one that has already been completed and has just opened its doors; Alhaurín de la Torre will open at the end of 2025; Salyt and Cártama will open in 2026, and Mayorazgo and Nerja will open in 2027.

In terms of surface area, the one being developed by Ediffisa on the land where the old Salyt brick factory used to be, in the northern part of Malaga city, will have 56,000 square metres, of which 21,000 will be a commercial area; the one in Alhaurín de la Torre will have 5,400, the one in Nerja 4,800; the one in El Mayorazgo 4,600 and the one in Cártama some 4,000. Estepona Park has a surface area of 5,288 square metres.

Antonio López, one of the heads of the Salyt project, explained that the future retail park to be located next to Avenida de Valle Inclán should open its doors between the second and fourth quarter of 2026. The driving force behind it will be a company specialising in DIY and it will also have restaurants, food and a sports area. "We want it to be a very complete and useful park for the residents of the area," he added.

The one in Alhaurín de la Torre will be the first to open. If all deadlines are met it will open in September 2025. Developed by López Real Inversiones 21, it will be located on Avenida Finca Taralpe and will have four commercial premises, including Tiendanimal, Rossmann and a Lidl supermarket.

The other three retail parks under development are being undertaken by the company Suba. The one in Cártama will be located in the El Cerro industrial estate and is the second phase of the one built in 2023 (Burger King was the first operator). The developer has announced that it will have three new companies that will share 4,000 square metres divided into two floors and 50 new parking spaces. The opening is scheduled for autumn 2026.

Next they hope to open in El Mayorazgo, in the Colinas del Limonar area. This will have a surface area of approximately 4,600 square metres and 140 parking spaces. It will have a supermarket as the main operator as well as pet and body care shops and restaurants. It is expected to open its doors in spring 2027.

The one in Nerja is in the urban planning process. It will have 4,800 square metres and 70 parking spaces, a supermarket and shops for personal care, pets, furniture and decoration and catering. The opening is scheduled for the autumn 2027.

The one that has just opened its doors is called Estepona Park and has been developed by Batex & Duplex. The first phase of the project has four stores of well-known international brands including Kiwoko, the Sprinter sports shop, an outlet of the Primaprix chain and the Veritas health food supermarket. Its opening has involved an investment of 15 million euros and has created around 100 jobs.

The AECC points out that this model is growing very fast since the reopening of all retail outlets after the Covid pandemic. Among its advantages are that they are open spaces with plenty of outdoor parking and large service-based businesses such as supermarkets, decoration and furniture shops.

The president of the association, Eduardo Ceballos, said that they are generally small projects, which require less investment, are easier to develop and are easily adapted to local markets. "It is a format that in Spain has had somewhat less development than in the rest of Europe". For this very reason, he added, "it now has greater growth potential".