New shops

[Deniz1]

Along the Catalkoy to Girne road there must be 40 new shops in various stages of construction especially near to Erdener market. There are already many finished ones that have remained empty for a long time are the builders crazy they must be throwing money away who on earth is going to rent them?

[sophie]

Believe me, from Girne to Karsyaka, there's far more than that.

[mrsgee]

I think someone knows something we don't........

[corona24]

can one of these "shops" be a HUGE 2nd hand (and CHEAP) shop? OR how about a shop that buys 2nd hand stuff for small prices and sells it in their shop for a little more than they bought? Consignment stores is what its called where I'm originally from. I am juuust wondering/suggesting.

[MrA]

Well drive from Karsiyaka to Catalkoy you will see very few empty shops , yes a few Kariskaya end, but generally it is a very busy area if you get the right business and many do. Also it is not our issue is it ? or any individuals ? its market forces that will prevail. This is a business area and quite rightly will develop for business, I can name many along that area that are doing very well indeed as I am sure you can. Of course some will come and will go as they are not in the right place (dont we see that often) or are just not viable as a long term business or as "we hear" rents are unviable. It was only a few years ago when people said "who will rent those shops next to Karakum Lemar! for 500 GBP/month" Now all done.
I for one am pleased that TRNC builders and developers are providing places for people to trade, it is as it should be. We can not or should not halt reasonable progress.

[waddo]

What is interesting to note is that the vast majority of the new builds are well back off the existing road - guess the builders have at last worked out that the main road there will one day become considerably wider than it is at the present, not before time either!

[Robert The Bruce]

MrA

I wonder which road you drive on to make such a comment.Or do you keep your eyes shut whilst driving ( like most Cypriots seem to ). Last week I counted approximately 40 EMPTY shops between Karsiyaka and Girne ( never mind Catalkoy) most of which have NEVER had an occupant. I read recently about a "building boom here". Quite true . All shops which will stay empty like the scores built over the last 8 years and still empty and all contriving to make this place look akin to a derelict dump.

[squashmad]

The amount of empty shops is ridiculous but I do wonder about the timing for the companies building these ie they buy the plot of land a few years ago, it then takes time to get the architectral drawings completed, then they are submitted for approval (again all this takes a long time) and all this before they can even think of building.

I am guessing that many of these may well have been thought of, designed and approved of prior to the major downturn and because of all the expense the builders may well feel they have to follow their plans through?

Just a thought!

[Groucho]

Squashmad - that's called 'throwing good money after bad'....

It does make you wonder - they don't seem to have business plans - a financial model created to forecast how they will make a go of a new business.... They just set up borrow like mad go into debt and close leaving creditors in their wake.

If anyone does find a niche then a few months later someone copies their idea in a premises close by with no idea how a finite number of customers will then be shared rendering their potential business fatally flawed...

As long as they have their name above the shop and a leased Merc out front they think they are a success! The chance of going bust it seems doesn't alter their plans.

Catalkoy is row after row of shop units currently empty or under construction... I reckon some of it is dirty money being hidden.

[eyebob94]

How do you "hide" dirty money in a row of shops? Intriguing!

[wanderer]

Retail outlets such high demand in the uk 23 to 33% empty
with a lot of the occupied shops are charity shops
Obviously Cyprus is going to buck the trend
Like the shop on the way to Ercan where they have given up and parrked a tractor or harvestor

[mrsgee]

eyebob94, if you know anything about money laundering.....yes you can hide the dirty money in a row of shops, much the same as it is hidden in the big hotels here.

[journey1]

mrsgee - you are 'spot on' ! LOL!

[kaiserphil]

It used to be that the Government encouraged the building of shops, and gave a considerable grant to people who built them. It did not matter, therefore, whether they opened or not.

Someone mentioned business plans above. The nearest thing to a business plan, as far as I could see, was that if a business seemed to be doing well, then you opened an identical business beside it.

[carol16]

If someone has a building company they have to keep building otherwise the company
folds if they build a block and only sell or rent a few they cover costs and go on to the
next project with a hope of a boom again and selling the rest

[sophie]

I'm still confused about Mr A's remarks. Just recently I actually did drive from Karsiyaka to close to the Acapulco and there were dozens of empty or half built shops. Probably more the Girne - Karsyaka end, than the Girne Ozankoy end.

[elizabeth]

We mustn't mention all the half built/empty apartment blocks either I expect, but they are there and springing up all over the place, does somebody know something the rest of us don't.