Mall owner GGP doubles down on brick and mortar retailing

New York

THE head of GGP Inc, one of the biggest high-quality US mall property owners, sees the recent spate of US department store closings as a chance to expand its redevelopment operations with plans to buy 100 of the shuttered emporiums.

Sandeep Mathrani, chief executive of GGP, on Wednesday said he was not against department stores but has latched onto their concept of offering a wide range of products under one roof. In the past six years GGP has redeveloped 115 department stores that once were mall anchors, and the real estate investment trust (REIT) has plans to redevelop another 100 in the next few years.