Centrepoint has a special place in the city of Sydney, being the first of its kind in the town. Situated right in the middle of Sydney’s central business district, it began as a medium sized building in 1972 housing about 52 shops, most of which are still in business. Westfield a large chain of shopping malls took over Centrepoint in December 2001. The Westfield Group is the world’s largest international retail property group which has its presence in New Zealand, U.K., America apart from Australia.
Westfield Centrepoint has the advantage of being located well, its proximity to the Centrepoint Tower, a well known landmark and tourist attraction. The stores there are mostly upper end and designer stores. Westfield Centrepoint has gone through many renovations in 1984, then 1996 and also in 2000.
Once Centrepoint was taken over by Westfield, it has been subject to many changes. Recently very far reaching and ambitious plans have been made for Centrepoint which have finally, after many years of sustained efforts, Westfield has finally won the approval of the authorities of Sydney City and also of the neighborhood malls to carry out extensive renovation of the Centrepoint.
The plan is very ambitious. Three main shopping centers, Centrepoint, Skygarden and The Imperial Arcade will be joined together to create a shopping and office complex of international stature. This is going to be a one-of-a-kind building. The work is going to be carefully done over a period of three years to integrate all three.
It is a fairly ambitious plan, but in the end the centre will add to the beauty of Sydney City. There will be just another 50 showrooms added, and there will be 123 more car parks, which will be a boon to this parking lot starved city. The plan is to beautify the city and not to add more shops.
At present Centrepoint has shops over five levels, selling everything from fresh food to designer ware. All the major retailers like K-Mart, Levis, Gucci and others have their presence here. There are computer stores, pharmacies, shoe shops, beauty salons and fast food outlets.
In case you are in Sydney and have not done your shopping yet, to pick up a souvenir you must visit Centrepoint. Of course you can also spend the whole day window shopping and wandering through the five levels of the mall and then when tired you can sit at a coffee shop and rest over a refreshing cup of coffee or pick up a bite at the many fast food outlets.
