PROTAGONISTS

 

Walter Brune

Walter Brune is one of Germany’s great architects. He planned shoppingmalls during the sixties. Since he realized the negative effects of oversized, non-integrated shopping centers on lively inner city zones he turned into a critic of shopping-centers. His activities as shopping center architect gave him a well founded inside view in the strategies of the real estate industry. Together with Holger Pump-Uhlmann he published several well-known books about shopping centers and its impact on cities, economy and environment.

Denis Cupic

was involved in big shopping center developments in Croatia. Cupic founded the Croatians „Developers - Society“, a lobby association for real estate developers. He knows all important "players" in Croatia. Together with architect Otto Baric jr. he is currently working on the development of a new shopping center in Varashdin. But he also knows very well the problems of real estate boom and bubbles, which we can find all over Croatia.

Werner Gruber

is the manager of the second largest shopping center in Styria, Austria, the Arena Fohnsdorf. Years ago the Arena Fohnsdorf already became the center of the whole area, nonetheless Gruber is worried about its preeminence.

Silvia Hartleb

ran  a restaurant in an Austrian town center. Because of the stiff competition of nearby shoppingmalls she was not longer able to run her restaurant. Since a couple of years Mrs. Hartleb studies the impact on social, economical and ecological live which is caused by the overdevelopment with suburbian shopping malls and founded a citicens´ initiative.

 

Thomas Kronsteiner

was professional football player. Today he works as successful shoppingcenter developer. He started his career with shoppingcenter developments in Lower Austria to continue with projects in Rumania and Hungaria till the crisis stopped his plans and he had to change his business focus. Today Kronsteiner is concentrating again on the Austrian market, even though it already shows saturation.

Alexander Otto

is CEO of the company ECE, which today is European market leader by developing innercity shoppingcenters. His father, Werner Otto, was the founder of the world largest mail order group Otto Versand. Werner Otto was  awarded with the Grand Cross 1st class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. The family  Otto is the fourth richest family in Germany (according to Manager Magazin 10/09). Today ECE is faced with criticism.