Alex Trelinski
THE US discount shopping giant Costco is set to open in Malaga in 2026 as part of a big revamp of the Malaga Nostrum shopping centre.
Centre owners, Bogaris, hope that the first stage of the makeover will start soon by getting planning permission to adapt the old Conforama furniture store into a cinema.
Meanwhile, Costco’s head in France and Spain, Diane Tucci, recently held a conference call with Malaga mayor, Francisco de la Torre, to reaffirm her commitment to opening a store in the Nostrum centre.
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Costco works on the principle of having to register and pay for a membership card before you can go shopping to take advantage of their lower prices and exclusive products.
Only its American rival, Walmart, beats to the top spot as the world’s largest retailer, and has outlets in Spain in Madrid and Sevilla
Once the Malaga Nostrum centre’s cinema screens move to the old Conforama site, then the current facility will be demolished to wake way for the Costco outlet.
The store will be part of a new shopping centre with plans for Costco’s building to be constructed within nine or 10 months.
Costco and other new stores will not have to wait for building permits because they were granted last year and will kick immediately once the old cinema is torn down.
The schedule suggests that Costco will open sometime in 2026, with work costing €18.3 million out of the total Malaga Nostrum centre remodelling budget of over €60 million.
Costco’s hypermarket will also have a 640-space car park, as well as a traditional feature of its store- a tyre sales store- as well as a restaurant, toilets, and offices.
The store will also operate a petrol station which will be sited on land currently occupied by a warehouse on the block in which Conforama.
The plan is to hand over all the land needed by Costco next year, once all the demolition has been carried out.
