The Central Department Store ( bg, Централен универсален магазин, ''Tsentralen universalen magazin,'' abbreviated as TSUM) is an upmarket department store in the centre of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, officially opened in 1957 and situated in a monumental edifice (part of The Largo complex) on one of the city's main boulevards. The store's construction began in 1955 and ended in the end of 1956, when the first customers entered TZUM. It was officially opened with a ceremony in 1957. The edifice was designed by architect Kosta Nikolov and has an area of 20,570 m². It features a covered inner yard taking up the centre of five of the building's seven floors. TSUM underwent major reconstruction in 1986 under the direction of architect Atanas Nikolov. Two years later, 120,000 people daily went through the store, which sold 123,000 items a day. After the democratic changes in 1989, the store remained public property until sold to Hong Kong fund manager, Regent Pacific Group, for the price of DM 30 million (about €15 million). Regent then invested $10.2 million in 1999–2000 to redevelop the property into a mixed-use office and retail building. TSUM was transformed to become a place for expensive

boutique A boutique () is a small shop that deals in fashionable clothing or accessories. The word is French for "shop", which derives ultimately from the Ancient Greek ἀποθήκη (''apothēkē'') "storehouse". The term ''boutique'' and also ''d ...

s rather than a store for the people, with the daily number of customers falling to 7,000.

Plovdiv Plovdiv ( bg, Пловдив, ), is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, standing on the banks of the Maritsa river in the historical region of Thrace. It has a population of 346,893 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is the c ...

businessman Georgi Gergov acquired TSUM on 19 October 2004. , world brands like Laura Ashley, Timberland, Nautica, Fila, Fred Perry,

Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized as adidas since 1949) is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufactur ...

, Mexx, Tommy Hilfiger,

Swarovski Swarovski (, ) is an Austrian producer of glass based in Wattens, Austria, and has existed as a family-owned business since its founding in 1895 by Daniel Swarovski. The company is split into three major industry areas: the Swarovski Crystal ...

Miss Sixty Miss Sixty (stylized as MISS SIXTY or MISS 60) is an Italian fashion Italy is one of the leading countries in fashion design, alongside France, the United States and the United Kingdom. Fashion has always been an important part of the country' ...

, Nike, Bagatt, Altınbaş and

Rossignol ''Rossignol'' is a French word meaning nightingale, and may refer to: People * Rossignols, a family of French cryptographers * André Rossignol (fl. 1923–1928), French racing driver * Bruno Rossignol (born 1958), French choral conductor and c ...

have stores in TSUM. The rent levels are one of the highest in Bulgaria, only competing with the neighbouring

Vitosha Boulevard Vitosha Boulevard ( bg, булевард „Витоша“, often called just , Vitoshka) is the main commercial street in the centre of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, which is abundant in posh stores, restaurants and bars. It extends from the ...

. According to the manager Tsvetomir Gergov, 12,000 people visit the store per day.

References

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External links

Official website

Official website
{{Shopping malls in Sofia Commercial buildings completed in 1956 1957 establishments in Bulgaria Department stores of Bulgaria Shops in Sofia

See also

References

External links