Zara cements its spot at Burnside Village with a 20-year lease and upcoming mega makeover

A global fashion brand will be taking time out, but is set to come back bigger and better than ever at Burnside Village.

When Spanish fashion retail store Zara opened at Burnside Village shopping centre in 2011, Alyssa Mittiga of Norwood was first through the door. Picture: Advertiser library

Spanish retail giant Zara might be taking a break from Burnside Village, but it will be back bigger and better than ever – after a multimillion-dollar makeover and signing a 20-year lease with the up-market shopping centre.

Andrew Cohen, who is the director of Cohen Group which owns Burnside Village, told The Advertiser the deal was “truly incredible news for South Australia”.

Zara has been at Burnside Village for close to 13 years; it opened the store, which was modelled on its Fifth Ave, New York, flagship, in late 2011.

In June, Zara at Burnside Village will close its doors for a refurbishment, which will include a “multimillion tier-1 couture/atelier fit-out”; the store, which will also be enlarged, is scheduled to re-open in mid October.

Mr Cohen said the refurbished store would be the second largest in Australia, the biggest being Zara’s Sydney store in Pitt Street Mall.

“Since our very first meeting, Zara and Cohen Group have worked tirelessly together and always front facing,” he said on LinkedIn, adding: “And where possible, face-to-face meetings which means a lot of time at their headquarters in A’Corunas (Spain). ZARA have already traded for thirteen years at Burnside Village and in 2024, will invest with their latest global Flagship store reflecting the strength in Adelaide (and South Australia) all via our commitment to retail excellence.”

When Zara opened at Burnside Village shoppers had been queuing outside since 5am. Picture: Brenton Edwards

When Zara, which has thousands of stores worldwide, opened its one and only outlet in SA at Burnside Village in late 2011 we couldn’t get enough.

Housed over two levels and occupying 2300sq m, our Zara was bigger and better than Sydney and Melbourne’s Zaras.

It was a coup that took two years of negotiations, with rumours that a period of free rent being offered to seal the deal.

When Zara at Burnside Village opened in November Alyssa Mittiga, then 18, was first in line after queuing from 5am.

Alyssa Mittiga was first in line when Zara at Burnside Village opened in 2011. Picture: Brenton Edwards

Susanna and Marisa Salandra were fans of Zara before it arrived at Burnside. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

Offering an eclectic mix of cheap and cheerful, but also affordable luxury clothing and accessories, Zara was the place to shop; a number of fashionistas would even time their twice-weekly visits to coincide with the arrival of new stock, which would sellout the same day to literally be first in, best dressed.

Zara’s upcoming facelift “aligns with Burnside Village’s Stage Six expansion project”, in which the shopping centre will double in size is scheduled to open in March.

Inditex for Zara managing director Jose Ignacio Nievas Andres said: “Our Burnside Village store will be the first in Australia, and one of the first in the Southern Hemisphere, to be updated with our latest best-in-class Couture/Atelier store layout, and we can’t wait to share this new in-store experience with Adelaide customers later this year.”

Zara at Burnside Village when it opened in 2011. Picture Brenton Edwards

The announcement that SA’s only Zara will be temporarily out of action comes in the lead up to Burnside Village’s new season launch from Tuesday April 9 to Thursday, April 11.

It also coincides with news that Sportsgirl is returning to Rundle Mall.

In the 1980s the Australian icon had a superstore, which even had its own restaurant out the back, at 97 Rundle Mall – near the Malls Balls.

Sportsgirl’s original store in Rundle Mall. Picture: Advertiser Library

Caitlin Petrov and Jasmine Thompson shopping at Sportsgirl in Rundle Mall in 2003. Picture: Advertiser Library

And it wasn’t just a store – it was a meeting place, especially on Friday nights when private school kids would dump their bags out the front and then congregate by "The Balls" or in The Gallery shopping centre at Max’s, which was legendary for its spicy hot chips.

By the early noughties Sportsgirl had moved out and Borders bookshop had moved in.

Sportsgirl had relocated a smaller store in Rundle Mall Plaza, and later had a spin-off (even smaller store) selling accessories in the mall.

While the latter wasn’t there for long, the Rundle Mall Plaza store, which faced onto the mall, was there until it quietly left the retail strip a few years ago.

The future Sportsgirl site in Rundle Mall. Picture: Anna Vlach

Sportsgirl is coming back to Rundle Mall. Picture: Anna Vlach

But now Sportsgirl has announced its return. A boarded-up store on the corner of Rundle Mall and James Place has a sticker saying “A new Sportsgirl Era is coming soon”.

An opening date is yet to be announced, but Rundle Mall executive manager Andrew White said he and his team were thrilled that Sportsgirl was returning and “adding to our enviable mix of fashion brands that shoppers know and love”.

“This new store follows the recent opening of Glassons in the mall’s western end and is testament to the confidence that major retail brands have in brick and mortar retail,” he said.

It is not known whether Zara, which has multiple stores in many cities around the world, plans to also set up shop in Rundle Mall.

Book for Burnside Village new season launch events here

Originally published as Zara cements its spot at Burnside Village with a 20-year lease and upcoming mega makeover