New Katara Plaza to house luxury stores, Qatar’s first children’s mall

A luxury spa, an upmarket French department store and a children’s mall will anchor a new outdoor air-conditioned commercial plaza that is set to open next year at Katara Cultural Village, officials have announced.

“Katara Plaza” will contain the Middle East’s first evian spa, named after the French mineral water firm. It will also be home to Qatar’s first Galeries Lafayette, a Paris-based retailer specializing in clothing, accessories and homeware, Katara managers told media yesterday while discussing details of the new development.

The plaza will be 38,000 square meters, which is equivalent to approximately one-quarter of City Center Mall’s retail area.

Acknowledging that a glut of commercial centers will be opening in Qatar over the next few years, officials said Katara Plaza’s traditional architecture and climate-controlled open-air design would help it compete.

Outdoor cooling technology was previously exhibited at Katara last summer during screenings of the 2014 World Cup.

Original article by Peter Kovessy

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New Katara Plaza to house luxury stores, Qatar’s first children’s mall