In late September, the Jumbo supermarket will open its doors in the colourful Nova shopping centre. The arrival of the supermarket chain brings great market segmentation and gives shoppers greater choice of where to buy their day-to-day groceries. This is the culmination of the long-standing hopes of local residents, the retailers’ association, the Municipality of Utrecht and real estate owner Urban Interest. For a long time, these partners have had the goal of enriching the variety of retailers in the shopping district, from speciality shops to low-cost stores and from familiar retail formulas to independent entrepreneurs. As well as the existing retail provision, there is the possibility to increase the individuality even further and the real estate owner has ambitions to add more new stores, such as a jeweller, ice cream parlour, espresso bar and fresh produce. With the expansion of its retail provision, this shopping district will attract not only local residents but also more visitors from further afield. Anticipating this shift, Urban Interest and the municipality are improving public transport connections, introducing a free bicycle plan and renovating and creating 800 free parking spaces.

Jumbo’s decision to open a store here is a great fit for the long-term strategy to restore Kanaleneiland to its former glory as a multicultural residential area. Projects in the area, including four large residential blocks targeted at a range of different income groups, ages and lifestyles, as well as the improved infrastructure and the nearby Papendorp office park, will only boost this strategy.