ISO 9001:2008 CERTIFIED NEWSPAPER 26 January 2013 14 Rabial I 1434 - Volume 17 Number 5591 Price: QR2 ON SATURDAY Weathermen expect another cold spell next month DOHA: Weather forecasters yesterday said winter wasn’t over yet and a cold spell was expected any time next month. According to a forecaster, weather condi- tions here are largely dependent on wind direction. If the wind blows from the south- ern regions, the mercury rises two to three degrees Celsius, as is happening now. The wind today is blowing from the southeast. However, when the wind changes direction and is north-westerly, it brings along chill and the temperature drops, said the forecaster. “The winter isn’t over yet.” The maximum temperature these days is between 25 and 29 degrees Celsius, depend- ing on the area in the country, while the minimum ranges between 13 and 17 degrees Celsius. In Doha, the maximum today is fore- cast at 27 degrees, and the minimum at 17 degrees. Abu Samra, located near Qatar’s border with Saudi Arabia, and which recently wit- nessed the coldest days and nights during the last chilly spell, will have a maximum temperature of 29 degrees Celsius and a low of 13 degrees today, the forecast said. Al Khor in the north, on the other hand, is expected to have day temperatures run- ning up to 26 degrees Celsius today, while at night the mercury will drop to 14 degrees. The forecast for Al Wakra is a noon tem- perature of 25 degrees Celsius and a mini- mum of 15 degrees. THE PENINSULA Five killed in Egypt protests CAIRO/ISMAILIA: Five people were shot dead in the Egyptian city of Suez during nationwide protests against President Mohammed Mursi yesterday, NOT GROCERIES, the second anniversary of the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak. Full story on page 8 London hotels ranked worst LONDON: Visitors to London have marked its hotels as the worst in a list of 100 cities due to overpriced mini- SERVICE CENTRES bars, lousy breakfasts and slow service, according to a survey released yesterday. London hotels were also criticised for overcrowding at breakfast, long queues at check-in, inability to cope with large groups of people, small rooms and poor views. THE ISSUE See also page 15 AGENCIES two. The neighbourhood stores and the malls The idea, according to Al Hanzab, is to make Plans to remove neighbourhood Abraham Augusthy stores from residential areas all and hypermarkets springing up are not rivals. sure that residents of a locality have access to Each has its own role to play,” Al Hanzab told basic services in their neighbourhood and don’t Today’s edition includes a over the country and house them The Peninsula yesterday. have to travel long distances to meet such needs. Design: in a shopping complex in each The neighbourhood stores provide services “The service centre plans are currently with special supplement on such as home delivery which the bigger shop- the private engineering office of the civic min- India’s Republic Day locality have been put off until ping complexes don’t. istry,” said the CMC chief. later this year. Each residential locality in the country will Asked why most malls and hypermarkets have a ‘service centre’, and priority will be given were located along Al Shamal Road and hardly to local neighbourhood stores in allotment of any such shopping facility existed in places like he proposed complexes that are being shops because these stores were given licences Al Wakra in the south, the CMC chairman said planned for each residential area in as Emiri largesse for economically weaker sec- it was the investors’ decision and the govern- the country are to be called ‘service tions of society a long time ago. ment had no role to play in deciding the loca- Tcentres’, according to the Central That is why most neighbourhood stores are tion of these complexes. Municipal Council (CMC). located randomly, and in residential buildings, “The owners built malls and hypermarkets Construction of these ‘service centers’ will he said. “There is, therefore, the need to organ- in places they thought were densely populated, likely start in Umm Salal and Al Khairatiyat, ise and streamline them.” and that made business sense to them.” said the chairman of CMC, Saud Al Hanzab. It is planned that each ‘service centre’, to But now the government seems to have Asked if neighbourhood stores were being be built by the Ministry of Municipality and changed its strategy, and while issuing licences PAGEremoved from residential 6 areas due to the Urban Planning, will have shops providing for new malls and hypermarkets, it might make mushrooming malls and hypermarkets, Al basic goods and services, such as laundries, sure that they are evenly distributed geograph- Hanzab replied in the negative. barber salons, tailoring shops, grocery stores ically, said Al Hanzab. “There is absolutely no linkage between the and eateries. See also page 2 A SPE www.thepeninsulaqatar.com [email protected] | [email protected] Editorial: 4455 7741 | Advertising: 4455 7837 / 4455 7780 JANUARY 26, 2013 ON SATURDAY 02 www.thepeninsulaqatar.com Home More malls, more expectations Need for wider geographical distribution of outlets; location and management keys to success BY FAZEENA SALEEM & Meera’s Deputy Chief Executive were totally different in nature. help you,” said Rajani Ranjoth, a MOHAMMED OSMAN Officer, Dr Mohammed Al “The concept of shopping housewife. Qahtani, while unveiling the com- malls first gained popularity in Aysha Ali, a Qatari youngster, ore than a dozen big pany’s expansion plans recently. the US, and then spread to the argued against opening more shopping malls have “Essentially, the community Far Eastern countries. In some malls with similar goods and sprung up in Doha model can be described as a large- European countries, commercial facilities. Mand its outskirts over scale supermarket that, in addi- streets featuring branded prod- “Shopping malls are the most the past 10 years, and many more tion to traditional groceries, will ucts are more popular than malls. popular places in Doha. It’s good are on their way. include additional services such The extreme weather conditions more of them are coming, so the At least nine new shopping cen- as banks, food court, laundromats in the Gulf is the main factor places will not be too crowded. tres costing a whopping QR20bn and so forth. The neighbourhood behind the popularity of shop- But shopping malls should be are planned in the next three model is a convenience store ping malls in this region, because different from one another not years, according to some reports. catering to the immediate vicinity they can provide all goods under only in facilities like restaurants The UAE-based Al Futtaim with groceries and basic services one roof, along with recreational and play areas, but also in things Group has announced plans to such as dry cleaners and pharma- facilities for children and ample they sell. If the same things are open Doha Festival City, its first cies. Using this model, 2013 will parking space,” said Altaf. going to be sold at the same price shopping mall in Qatar, which is see more Al Meera outlets open- Mohamed Kateeb, Advertising everywhere, it may not make a expected to cost QR6bn. Ezdan is ing throughout the country,” Al and Marketing Manager at big difference,” planning three malls in Gharrafa, Qahtani said. Carrefour, said, “It’s good if more Anna Niclas, a European expa- Al Wakra and Wukair under its Al Meera has community and malls and hypermarkets are com- triate working in Doha for the new arm, Ezdan Mall Company, neighbourhood shopping cen- ing. Of course, there will be more last two years, said, “Here malls which will be launched soon. tres covering more than 60,000 competition, but that challenge are popular because people have The North Gate Mall, a luxury square metres already under is good for business. It would be no other places to go. Malls have shopping facility in Khairtiyat, development and most of them even better if new brands are become places to hang around. Marina Mall, Doha Mall in are expected to open in the next being introduced, so people will Malls are overcrowded during Mesaimeer and Tawar Mall are three years, he added. have a better choice.” weekends. If more malls are com- among the other projects in the The new facilities will be Firoz Mohideen, General ing up, it could ease the crowding. pipeline. located in Al Laqtafia, Al Dakira, Manager of Hyatt Plaza, said good “In other countries, people go Al Meera Consumer Goods, Al Wajba, Jeryan Njema, Muraikh, planning was necessary before to malls to buy things, but here a leading Qatari company that Azizia, Rawdad Al Qadeem, establishing a new mall. it is more to hang out and dine. runs a chain of shopping facilities Muaither, Rawdad Al Hamama, “We could see many malls com- When more malls are built there across the country, has embarked and Al Wakra. ing up. But the authorities should will be more choice, it gives the on an ambitious expansion plan The state-backed Barwa Real ensure that they are properly dis- opportunity to get many things which includes opening of several Estate company has come out tributed according to the popula- under one roof. Now more brands new shopping malls. with an innovative shopping con- tion. At the end of the day, we are being introduced in Qatar, so Many of the existing Al Meera cept that was first introduced in should not be having just many maybe it will be a good oppor- outlets are being expanded with the sprawling Barwa Village in buildings; they should be built tunity for the shoppers to have a modern design.