The art of retail in the capital

A look at Beirut’s major shopping districts Despite a year of bombs and instability that has seen robust economic growth slow to a trickle, the Lebanese, especially the wealthier residents of Beirut, ably supported by liquid GCC nationals, have hardly stopped spending on consumer items and related services. Although retailers, including restaurateurs, took a knock in February, March and April in 2005 following the assassination of Rafik Hariri, overall retail figures for last year fell only by 15%, ensuring that the $3.5 billion sector is holding steady while, by and large, rents in the main shopping areas have also held their ground. It could, many agree, have been much worse. The Beirut retail market has become highly competitive in the last 15 years, with, in addition to the natural evolution of traditional retail hubs, the arrival of shopping malls, which have become bigger and better since the first monstrous generation