With around 6.5 million visitors per year, stable occupancy of up to 100 percent, and a strong anchoring in the local community, City Center one Split is one of the most successful shopping centers in Croatia. Instead of focusing on short-term optimization, ownership and management deliberately pursued a comprehensive development of the existing asset. More than €22 million was invested in refurbishment, sustainability, and new usage concepts.
At the heart of this transformation is the new leisure anchor Kontraloop, which strategically expands the center toward experience, quality of stay, and evening use. The goal: not to react, but to think ahead. A conversation about investing in good times, the role of shopping centers as social marketplaces, and why long-term asset management is more important than ever.
ACROSS: Mr. Vorih, City Center one Split has been successful for years and is almost fully let. Why was now the right time for a comprehensive further development?
Sven Vorih: Perhaps precisely because of that. A shopping center that is performing well should not simply be administered. City Center one Split opened in 2010 — right in the middle of the global financial crisis. That was anything but an ideal start: we opened with less than 70 percent occupancy, and many international tenants withdrew because their headquarters imposed investment freezes.
Nevertheless, we believed in the concept, worked intensively on it for two years, and stabilized the center step by step. Today, we are consistently between 98 and 100 percent occupancy. And from this position of strength, we said: now is the right moment to invest. Not because it was necessary — but because we believe in the location and wanted to give something back to it in the long term.
“A shopping center that is performing well should not simply be administered — now is precisely the time to invest.”
Sven Vorih, Managing Partner and Co-Founder, CC Real© CC Real
ACROSS: You deliberately do not speak of a classic repositioning. Why?
Sven Vorih: Because we did not need a fundamental realignment. We didn’t have to replace tenants or radically change uses. The tenants were successful, revenues were good, and the center was functioning.
What we did was more of a further development: we invested to bring the shopping experience up to date, renewing materials, colors, and quality of stay. After 10 to 15 years, every center needs such a step — regardless of whether it is currently facing problems or not. Those who only invest when things become difficult are already too late.
ACROSS: What role does City Center one Split play in the regional market today?
Sven Vorih: A very central one — and deliberately as a center for the local population. Split is of course strongly shaped by tourism, but from the very beginning we decided not to focus primarily on tourists.
A good example is Sunday opening: in Croatia, 16 Sundays per year are legally permitted. During the high season, we deliberately keep the center closed on many of these Sundays so that the city can focus on tourism. Instead, we open more strongly in the months when locals use the center intensively.
Economically, we are talking about a center that is expected to generate over €200 million in net annual turnover, create around 2,000 jobs, and deliver significant regional value creation. At the same time, it is increasingly being used in the evenings — as a meeting place, not just a shopping destination.
ACROSS: What was the investment logic behind the modernization?
Sven Vorih: Clearly long-term. Value preservation and future-proofing were the focus. We wanted to stabilize the center before market conditions changed.
Interestingly, immediately after completion of the refurbishment, InterCapital Real Estate approached us as a new investor and partner. It is their first investment in a commercial retail property in Croatia. This confirms that professionally managed and sustainably positioned assets are also attractive to institutional investors. Gradually, the Croatian Raiffeisen Pension Fund also acquired shares in CCo Split. We deliberately did not sell all shares — we remain engaged as manager and co-shareholder because we believe in the potential of the property.
ACROSS: Modernization during ongoing operations is considered particularly challenging. What was the biggest challenge?
Sven Vorih: The biggest challenge is always the customer. As soon as shopping becomes complicated, people stay away — they have alternatives.
We rebuilt the entire mall while it was fully operational, with large scaffolding in the middle of the center. That is logistically demanding and requires a lot of communication with tenants. All the more surprising for us was that many customers hardly noticed how extensive the construction work actually was.
Sales did not decline during the renovation period, but on the contrary, they increased. This shows how important a strong operational team is. Without such a team, a project like this would not be possible.
“We didn’t modernize because we had to, but because we believe in the location and wanted to future-proof it from a position of strength.”
Sven Vorih, Managing Partner and Co-Founder, CC Real
ACROSS: A central new element is the leisure anchor Kontraloop. Why this focus?
Sven Vorih: Across Europe — and worldwide — we see a shift away from pure retail toward leisure, gastronomy, and experiences. In Croatia, this share is still relatively low compared to Western Europe.
With Kontraloop, we deliberately did not add a classic retail tenant but instead created around 2,000 to 3,000 square meters for a high-quality leisure flagship anchor. We are talking about Split’s largest bowling facility with twelve lanes, a large arcade zone with 58 gaming machines, bars, gastronomy, and event areas. We invested an additional €3.5 to 4 million in this.
Kontraloop is a high-quality entertainment concept with bowling, games, and gastronomy — a place for people aged 8 to 99.
Our aim was not the return of this space alone, but the added value for the entire center: longer dwell time, new target groups, and stronger footfall outside classic shopping hours.
ACROSS: What effects are you already observing?
Sven Vorih: Even in the soft-opening phase, we see very high acceptance. Kontraloop works during the day for families, in the evening for young adults, and companies use it for events or teambuilding.
Activating the evening hours is particularly important to us. Together with the Cineplexx cinema with seven auditoriums — including an MX4D hall — the center is increasingly developing into a year-round retail and leisure destination.
ACROSS: You describe shopping centers as social meeting places. What does that mean in practice?
Sven Vorih: Shopping centers are modern marketplaces. Historically, that was always their function — and today this is truer than ever.
In Split, for example, we integrated a market hall with exclusively regional providers: fish, meat, fruit, vegetables — all from the region. People don’t just come to shop, but to meet, have a coffee, and exchange ideas.
There are also events: children’s shows, sports events, art exhibitions, collaborations with local clubs. Not every space needs to be maximally monetized. Sometimes it is more important to create room for community.
“Shopping centers are modern marketplaces — places where people meet, spend time, and feel part of a community, not just places to shop.”
Sven Vorih, Managing Partner and Co-Founder, CC Real
ACROSS: The center is EU taxonomy-compliant and DGNB Gold certified. Where do you see the concrete added value of ESG?
Sven Vorih: For us, ESG is not a new topic. We have always paid attention to operating buildings efficiently, retaining employees in the long term, and dealing fairly with tenants and partners — long before there were abbreviations and certificates for it.
Of course, certifications help today in discussions with institutional investors and banks. But the real added value lies in day-to-day operations: lower operating costs, more satisfied tenants, stable cash flows. Sustainability only works if it makes economic sense — everything else remains theory.
ACROSS: Which learnings from Split can be transferred to other locations?
Sven Vorih: The principles can be applied almost everywhere: long-term thinking, active asset management, real investments based on conviction, and community focus.
What cannot be transferred are design, tenants, or cultural details. Every center must be conceived locally. But the basic understanding — that people need to feel comfortable and want to come back — is universal.
ACROSS: Finally: How would you describe City Center one Split today in one sentence?
Sven Vorih: As a shopping center that combines economic strength, social responsibility, and a long-term vision — and therefore remains relevant in the future.
Fact Box
City Center one Split at a Glance
Location: Split, Croatia
Opening: 2010
Positioning: Regionally anchored shopping center with a clear focus on the local community
Occupancy Rate: Stable between 98 and 100%
Footfall: 6.5 million
Retail Space: 60,000 m²
Tenants: 190
Investments (Refurbishment): Approx. €20 million for modernization of the center
Additional approx. €3.5 – 4 million for the leisure anchor Kontraloop
Leisure Highlight: Kontraloop – approx. 3,000 m² of entertainment space with bowling, games, gastronomy, and event use
Economic Indicators: Perspective of over €200 million in annual net turnover generated by tenants
Around 2,000 jobs at the site
Special Features:
- Modernization during ongoing operations without revenue losses
- Strong activation outside classic shopping hours
- Market hall with regional providers as a social meeting point
ESG & Sustainability:
- EU taxonomy-compliant
- DGNB Gold certified
- Focus on energy efficiency, long-term employee retention, and operational sustainability
Ownership Structure: Strategic partnership: InterCapital Real Estate, CC Real, Raiffeisen Pension Fund
