Morocco Mall: First Guinness World Record for the largest in-store shop façade

The Galeries Lafayette department store in Morocco Mall, Casablanca, which opened its' doors on December 5th, has been awarded a Guinness World RecordTM as having “The largest in-store shop façade has a combined area of 3,381.92 m² (36,402.68 ft²) distributed over the three-storey Galeries Lafayette shop (France) located in the Morocco Mall shopping centre in Casablanca, Morocco. The store, developed and managed by Groupe Aksal (Morocco), was designed by Davide Padoa of Design International (UK) .

With an overall height of 14m over 3 floors, the façade of Galeries Lafayette in Casablanca wraps itself gracefully around the shop for nearly 241m. This façade surpasses all architectural splendour: backlit and made of aluminium bronze, it is modelled, with aesthetic design and motifs, on the famous dome of the original store on Boulevard Haussmann in Paris, which has been classified as a historical monument since 1975.

Galeries Lafayette Casablanca offers 10,000m² of commercial space with 6 different themed partitions: Female fashion, Male fashion, Children’s fashion, Accessories, Shoes and Beauty. The Galeries Lafayette will house more than 300 international brands of which over 90% are available in Morocco for the first time. 

Morocco Mall...A dream come true

Morocco Mall, the first and only destination mall in the Mediterranean region and Africa, ranks upon its opening in the top 5 destination malls in the world by the quality of its offer. Designed by Davide Padoa, Design International, Morocco Mall is set to become a destination and living place for all Casablanca inhabitants and a major tourist’s attraction in the Mediterranean region and Africa. Stretching over 10 hectares and with an investment of 200 million Euros, Morocco Mall offers a diverse experience of shopping, leisure and food & beverage, inviting everyone to enjoy their own unique and magical experience, with family or friends, in a truly original and contemporary architectural design. With a surface of 200,000 m² and 350 stores, Morocco Mall brings together 600 brands of infinite variety from luxury fashion to culture, gastronomy, entertainment and leisure, many of which are present in Africa for the first time.

Morocco Mall...Over 100,000 visitors seduced upon opening

Having just arrived back from the VIP opening of Morocco Mall, in Casablanca, I thought I would share my experiences with you...Where to begin? What an amazing opening, Madame Salwa Idrissi Akhannouch, Chairman of the Aksal Group, has certainly set the benchmark in Mall openings. With every fine detail taken care of, she is a truly remarkable person and a pleasure to meet. Here she sums up the project...

Morocco Mall is the true essence of a destination mall mixing shopping and lesiure. We wanted to go that extra mile, to place ourselves in a new league to traditional shopping centres. Our vision and desire was to offer the people of Casablanca, Moroccans and visitors to the Kingdom a unique and magical place that could be found nowhere else on Earth. The culture, the leisure attractions and the public gardens along the seafront all join together to complete the urban landscape and offer the people of Casablanca a new place of life and relaxation in one of the busiest areas of the city: The Corniche.”

What an awe-inspiring event, with champagne flowing, the finest caviar and seafood, as well as other delicacies on offer, Morocco welcomed for the first time Jennifer Lopez, and many national celebrities to entertain the evening's VIP guests. An amazing performance from the 3rd musical fountain in the world (1st for the region) delighted guests, culminating in a spectacular firework display that lit the Casablanca skyline.