Since the beginning of 2026, Gemini Park Bielsko-Biała has completed 11 refurbishment projects covering retail and service units with a combined area of nearly 6,800 sq m. Stores given a new look include the LPP Group brands Reserved, House, Cropp and Mohito. Each underwent an interior refresh, with new fixtures and fittings, a revised sales floor layout and updates to meet current brand standards. The CCC store also underwent a comprehensive transformation, adopting the chain’s latest store concept. Changes also extended to Vision Express and Swiss, where interiors and fittings were refreshed.

Services are playing an increasingly important role in modern shopping centres, so investment now extends beyond retail to the development of service outlets and improvements in customer service standards. As customers’ expectations grow, convenience, functional spaces and modern technology are becoming equally important. A comprehensive refurbishment of the PKO Bank Polski branch addressed these needs. The unit, covering more than 236 sq m, received a new layout with modern advisory areas, a queue management system, self-service facilities and dedicated spaces offering greater comfort and privacy during meetings with advisers.

– Gemini Park Bielsko-Biała is continually developing alongside its tenants. Brands operating at the centre regularly invest in new store concepts, carry out refurbishments, expand their premises and adapt them to current standards and customer expectations. This allows us to keep improving the quality of our offering and maintain the centre’s appeal. Importantly, these upgrades are very often accompanied by lease extensions, which are the clearest sign of our partners’ confidence in the location and its sales potential – emphasises Krzysztof Brączek, Director of Gemini Park Bielsko-Biała.

Investing in experiences

Changes at the centre also encompass spaces for relaxation and leisure. Lodomania now has a completely redesigned customer area, with more seating, a more intimate layout that makes meetings more comfortable, and a new design incorporating greenery and atmospheric lighting. Additional attractions for children have also been introduced, allowing the space to better meet the needs of families visiting Gemini Park. Park W DECHE! has also undergone extensive refurbishment. The eco-friendly recreation and entertainment park celebrates its tenth anniversary this year. To mark the occasion, the space has been thoroughly refreshed and its offering expanded with new large-scale attractions. These include the multilevel “Kostkarka” play structure, an extensive spider-shaped maze, an interactive nautical-themed sandpit and a new relaxation area for parents and carers. The investment responds to steadily growing interest in the park: it welcomed nearly 150,000 visitors in 2025, and attendance continues to increase year on year.

Customer comfort throughout the centre

Alongside investment by its tenants, Gemini Park is also consistently carrying out its own refurbishment projects. Design work is currently under way on a comprehensive refurbishment of the toilets, which will be brought up to contemporary standards of functionality, aesthetics and user comfort. This is another element of the strategy to steadily improve communal areas and the standard of the centre’s infrastructure.

The CCTV system is also being upgraded to improve security for customers and tenants. As expectations of the quality and safety of public spaces rise, solutions of this kind are becoming a key factor in building the competitive advantage of modern shopping centres.

– The centre’s development is the result of a consistently implemented strategy encompassing both investment by the owner and refurbishments undertaken by tenants. We make sure these two processes run in parallel and complement one another. Further phases of improvements are already planned, including the development of the dining area and additional refurbishments by brands that have been with us for many years. This approach allows us to maintain high standards and strengthen Gemini Park Bielsko-Biała’s position as a modern, appealing destination for shopping and meeting others – adds Krzysztof Brączek.

Management quality matters more than age

According to the Colliers report “The Last Chance for Ageing Properties – Modernise, Repurpose or Demolish?”, one in three retail properties in Poland is already more than 20 years old. This means the retail sector is entering a phase in which shopping centres’ competitiveness will depend less on floor area and more on the quality of management, regular refurbishment and the ability to respond to changing trends.

– The retail market is constantly changing, which means developing a shopping centre cannot be a one-off task, but must be an everyday process. Consistent investment, close collaboration with tenants and careful attention to customers’ needs ensure that Gemini Park Bielsko-Biała, which has been operating since 2009, remains a modern, competitive and appealing destination for shopping and leisure. We believe that a shopping centre’s success depends on its ability to keep developing, rather than its age – concludes Krzysztof Brączek.