What do Ratina’s users think about the new shopping centre?
The Ratina shopping centre opened its doors on 19 April as Finland’s newest and Tampere’s biggest shopping centre. It is also the largest shopping centre in Sponda’s portfolio. The opening festivities lasted a total of four days. What were the customers’ and entrepreneurs’ first impressions of Ratina?
A shopping centre’s popularity is determined by customers. We went down to Ratina on the second day of the opening festivities to ask customers and tenants the following questions:
- What does Ratina mean to you/your company?
- What does Ratina mean to Tampere?
- What were your expectations for Ratina? Did it live up to them?
- What is best about Ratina?
Arto Rastas
Chef, restaurateur, Restaurant Periscope
- Opening such a huge restaurant in a location as impressive as this is one of the highlights of my career.
- For Tampere, Ratina means the arrival of high-quality retail space and brands, which reflects the rapid growth of the city. What Periscope is to Tampere is an international concept that is unique in Finland – a combination of a casual lounge bar, high-quality restaurant and a fantastic rooftop terrace.
- When I had my first look inside Ratina a year ago, I wondered whether it would be too much like a large hall. But this place has exceeded all my expectations. Interior design, acoustics, lighting and colours have been used to create a space where everything is just right.
- Ratina is an injection of life for Tampere. It is modern and fresh and it will surely bring more activity to the city.
Anna-Liisa Alenius
Pensioner, Tampere
- I live near here, just upstream from the rapids. Ratina represents a nice change. I might be getting up there in age, but I like new things.
- Traditionally, the name Ratina makes me think of the Ratina Stadium. I’m glad that they used that name for this new shopping centre. It’s a fresh and positive name.
- People always have their expectations. I had a certain picture of Ratina in my head but I knew it would be different from what I expected. But I’d say it looks great. It exceeds my expectations.
- I like how spacious it is. There’s lots of entrances and a lot of places to sit down. I’ve also noticed there are many good clothing stores and nice cafés. I just had some coffee and a jelly doughnut and found some nice people to have a chat with, despite not knowing them beforehand. I like the architecture and clean look of the place.
Emmi Haapaniemi
Store Manager, Granit
- For us entrepreneurs, Ratina means new opportunities and convenient access, which should bring in a lot of people, even from longer distances. A new shopping centre and a new shop are a good combination.
- Ratina brings a much-needed breath of fresh air to Tampere.
- It’s been fun to see the building go up. It exceeded my expectations. I didn’t realise this shopping centre would be so big. The older functionalist buildings work well with the new building.
- My favourite aspects of Ratina are its bright ambience and all the new things you can find here. It just puts you in a good mood.
Saara Kaho
Interior designer, mother, Tampere
- I can’t say.
- It looks like there’s a comprehensive range of services available here. It’s always good to get something new in Tampere.
- I was looking forward to visiting the interior design stores, especially Granit. I’ve bought products from their Helsinki store and online shop in the past. I was also eager to have a Zara store in Tampere. I was delighted when I walked in. It feels a lot bigger than you think from the outside. It’s spacious enough that you can easily get around with a pram, even with the big crowds that are here for the opening festivities.
- My favourite aspects of Ratina are the interior design shops and the new cafés and restaurants. I will come back to try them out with my family.
Published 6.5.2018