Mapic Italy: the platform dedicated to the operational management of shopping centres makes its debut

Mapic Italy has announced the launch of Retail Operations Marketplace, the new platform dedicated to the operational management of shopping centres and chains of retail outlets, which will make its debut on 26 and 27 May 2027 at Rho Fiera Milano.

Retail Operations Marketplace will occupy an independent pavilion, but adjacent to and directly connected with Mapic Italy. The event is aimed at property owners and retail brands, but with a different focus and different teams in attendance: whereas Mapic Italy is dedicated to creating the retail mix of a retail destination through the leasing of spaces, Retail Operations Marketplace aims to promote operational excellence and innovation in the services that help support the performance, resilience and profitability of the asset.

This new platform responds to the structural change in the retail real estate sector. Property owners and brands must now support the profitability, enhancement and attractiveness of their assets, adapting their management to stricter energy regulations and new forms of electric mobility, limiting the obsolescence of technical systems, reducing new security-related risks and responding to the growing demand for clean, reliable and liveable environments.

The sector in figures

Some figures help to put these issues into perspective. According to UrbiStat data, Italy has 1.225 facilities classified as shopping centres, totalling approximately 17 million sq m of GLA (gross lettable area). On this basis, applying a prudent estimate of average annual operating costs, Mapic Italy and Retail Operations Marketplace estimate potential management costs of approximately 750 million euros. Energy, maintenance, facility management, security and the technical management of communal areas are among the main operating costs to be optimised in order to improve the performance of retail assets.

According to the European Commission, buildings account for approximately 40% of the European Union's final energy consumption, generating 36% of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions. Approximately 75% of Europe's building stock is energy-inefficient and requires investment.

On the security front, according to the Retail Theft Barometer in Italy 2025, promoted by Checkpoint Systems Italia in collaboration with Nielsen IQ, in 2024 retail inventory discrepancies in Italy averaged 1,2% of annual turnover, equal to 4,12 billion euros. 26% of this value is attributable to supplier and administrative errors; the remaining share is due to external and internal theft.

Five thematic areas

The exhibition area will offer a complete overview of the main service and solution providers, organised into five broad categories aligned with the Opex and Capex investment decision-making processes of shopping centres and retail assets:

• Energy solutions and sustainable management – from electric mobility to consumption management, from HVAC systems to the certification of environmental performance;
• Vertical transport and people flows – lifts, escalators and people-movement systems;
• Construction and fit-out – flooring, lighting, windows and doors, furnishings and façades;
• Security and people – barriers and control systems, fire prevention services, personnel management services;
• Facility management – cleaning and waste management, green-space management, systems maintenance.

The format combines an exhibition area, pitching sessions dedicated to each of the five thematic areas, a conference programme focused on concrete cases and best practices in the daily management of shopping centres and networks of retail outlets, and targeted matchmaking through The Deal Maker, Mapic's digital platform that enables exhibitors, sponsors and participants to identify the most relevant contacts for planning meetings and accelerating new business opportunities. The project's partner associations are Adcc (Associazione Direttori Centri Commerciali) and Cncc (Consiglio Nazionale dei Centri Commerciali).

Value for participants

For the buyers attending the event (operations departments, technical and asset management departments, procurement departments and shopping centre management), Retail Operations Marketplace represents a platform that will enable them to identify new solutions and suppliers, compare management approaches and optimise procurement processes, service levels (SLA), compliance and the energy efficiency of the portfolio.

For exhibitors (solution and service providers), the event will provide direct access to a select community of decision-makers who control or influence the operating expenditure and investment of shopping centres, retail destinations and store networks: not a generic opportunity for visibility, but an industry channel geared towards qualified business discussions.

Comments

“The market has long been asking us for a place to talk about management, not just development and leasing,” comments Francesco Pupillo, director of Mapic. “In Italy, decisions on energy, security, systems and maintenance involve significant sums each year, but are often made by researching, meeting and discussing each individual supplier, with a considerable expenditure of time. Retail Operations Marketplace has been created to fill this gap: a selective space, with a limited number of exhibitors and an audience of verified decision-makers, where comparisons are based on concrete cases and results.”

“In a context in which operating costs have an ever-greater impact on the performance of retail assets, the ability to identify the highest-performing solutions and management best practices becomes strategic,” adds Gianluca Martora, asset & facility management director at Igd Siiq. “Innovations in energy, facility management, security, mobility and fit-out not only make it possible to optimise expenditure, but also to sustainably improve the quality, efficiency and attractiveness of retail destinations.”

Roberto Zoia, president of Cncc, Mapic Italy's main partner, comments: “The Italian shopping centre market now comprises more than 1.200 sites. Issues relating to energy efficiency, the obsolescence and ongoing modernisation of systems, the management of new forms of mobility and security, refurbishment and restyling are now central factors in strategies for enhancing assets, both for property owners and consumers. Over the years, Cncc has always supported the sharing of management best practices and operational excellence through ongoing training and working groups among the market's leading operators. The creation of Retail Operations Marketplace as a platform dedicated to the management of retail assets responds to a clear need among operators for comparison and strengthens Mapic Italy's position as a central event for the Italian real estate industry at 360°.”

This article was translated from the original Italian version with the assistance of artificial intelligence. In case of discrepancies, please refer to the original Italian version.