UAE: Dubai Holding Appoints Chief Operating Officer for Mall of the World Project

Last week Dubai Holding announced the appointment of Morgan Parker as Chief Operating Officer of Mall of the World, a unique all-season city district that is currently under development in the city of Dubai. One year ago the global investment holding company owned by the government had announced its plans to build the world’s largest shopping mall in Dubai around. The around 743,000 square meter (8 million square feet) large mall will be built within a covered, temperature-controlled complex occupying a total area of 4.5 million square meters (48 million square feet). In addition to the mall, the complex will also host 100 hotels, apartment buildings, a wellness district, a cultural district and a large indoor family theme park. Unlike other shopping centers in Dubai, the shopping mall itself will take the form of an extended retail street network.

Morgan Parker, who previously served as CEO at global private equity firm Rose Rock, will oversee progress of the Mall of the World project, which hopes to add significantly to the emirate’s tourism, retail and hospitality portfolio. According to Dubai Holding, an international team consisting of best-in-class urban designers, transport planners and expert specialists has already been assembled. The team is now evolving the mall’s master plan to focus on integrating urban planning with mixed-use development to offer a year-round pedestrian experience. Mall of the World is expected to host over 180 million visitors annually. (eap)