LEGO, the popular Danish toy manufacturer, has set its sights on opening a store in Brisbane’s CBD and could potentially establish a shop within the Queen Street Mall precinct.
The toymaker reportedly plans to expand its operations in Australia and New Zealand with at least 20 more outlets.
LEGO has existing nine stores in the region, including two in Queensland at the QIC’s Robina Town Centre in Gold Coast and Westfield Chermside north of Brisbane CBD. Two more LEGO outlets are expected to open in Perth and Canberra within the year.
The news comes as LEGO isn’t the only global brand planning to open at Queen Street Mall. Samsung, South Korea’s electronic brand leader, Sephora, France’s famous beauty products brand, and Longines, the Swiss quality watchmaker, are also keen on moving into the CBD site.
Queen Street Mall, which spans 40,000 square metres of space for 700 different retailers, has had a number of vacancies due to the pandemic lockdowns but property experts said signs of recovery are slowly manifesting in the precinct, especially after Brisbane secured the 2032 Olympics.
Internation retailers want a prime spot in Brisbane CBD as it has drawn attention because of the upcoming Olympics as well as its management of the COVID-19 transmissions compared to Sydney and Melbourne.
The latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and Colliers showed continued interest and confidence from retailers, especially for clothing, footwear, personal accessory brands.