The Yas Mall, a shopping and entertainment destination located in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, UAE, is undergoing a major redevelopment to improve the visitor experience.
The redevelopment of the 345,000m² Yas Mall will transform the mall’s spaces while also introducing innovative retail concepts. It will provide a unique and diversified offering to tenants and customers upon completion.
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The project is being executed by Aldar Investment, a business division of UAE-based real estate development and management company Aldar Properties. Construction started in March 2021 and the redevelopment is expected to involve an investment of approximately AED500m ($136.12m). Being implemented in phases, the mall upgrade is anticipated to be completed by September 2022.
Yas mall location and access
The mall is located about 15 minutes away from Abu Dhabi International Airport and a 45-minute drive from Dubai. The location is less than 30 minutes from Abu Dhabi’s city centre.
The facility has multiple entry points and can be easily accessed via the Yas Express, a complimentary shuttle bus service in Yas Island.
Yas Mall redevelopment details
The redevelopment plan involves the redesign and refurbishment of key areas of the shopping centre. The project will repurpose 40% of the gross leasable area to add new experiential retail, food and beverage (F&B), and office spaces.
The project will introduce more than 100 new stores and concepts to improve the retail experience of customers.
Approximately 15,000m² of office space will be added to the mall, including the recently launched Cloud Spaces, a co-working space that marked the first milestone in the redevelopment project.
Other works of the shopping mall refurbishment in Abu Dhabi
Wayfinding technologies will be incorporated at the mall to improve the customer journey within the mall. An interactive digital art screen will be installed to replace the Water Fountain in the Town Square area, which is located in the centre of the mall. The refurbishment works will also involve the parking areas, entrances, and welcome desks.
To improve sustainability, the redevelopment will reduce the carbon footprint of the mall by 59t a year and increase its recycling rate to 40%. A customised composter is being added to convert food waste to bio soil that is planned to be used in 115,000m² of the mall’s landscape. Furthermore, new LED lighting will be installed to replace 60,000 lamps across the mall.
The project will also transform the Boulevard that connects Yas Mall with Ferrari World Abu Dhabi and CLYMB Abu Dhabi into an all-new sports hub with five unique concept and experiential stores.
Retail offerings at Yas Mall
The Yas Mall redevelopment project will increase the footprint of health, beauty, and jewellery spaces in the mall. Several international fashion brands, including Urban Outfitters, which will be the first store of the brand in Abu Dhabi, lifestyle brand Kendall & Kylie, and footwear retailer Duozoulu, will occupy space at the Yas Mall.
One of the many new features at the facility will include a home furnishings district that will house stores such as EBarza and Ethan Allen for the first time in Abu Dhabi.
Existing retailers at the shopping centre include Adidas, Aldo, American Eagle Outfitters, Bath & Body Works, Beverly Hills Polo Club, Calvin Klein, Carrefour, Carter’s, Claire’s, Clarks, Cole Haan, Debenhams, Diesel, DKNY, Guess, Hamleys, Home Center, Hollister, and Lego.
Dining and entertainment options
The Yas Mall redevelopment project will expand the mall’s F&B offering by 40% through the introduction of multiple F&B brands. A new food hall and outdoor terraces will also be added at the North Entrance of the mall, welcoming both local and international brands. The Town Square will also be revamped to offer an alfresco-inspired dining experience.
Existing dining venues include Zaza Restaurant, Urban RetrEAT, Laderach, Marks & Spencer Café, Burger King, Chili’s, DQ Grill & Chill, Dunkin Donuts, Costa Coffee, KFC, McDonald’s, Starbucks, and Subway.
The shopping mall has a 20-screen Vox Cinemas complex, including four Gold Cinemas equipped with 4DX technology. An adventure hub, known as CLYMB™ Abu Dhabi, features the widest indoor skydiving flight chamber in the world and the tallest indoor climbing wall in the world.
Other entertainment options at the mall include KidZania, an interactive children’s ‘edutainment’ concept, Fun Works play and learning space, and Lego: Pop-in and Play.
