Comment: The Olympics have finally arrived at Westfield Stratford City

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There have really been only two words on the Westfield Stratford City team’s lips for the last 5 years – “Launch”, and “Olympics”.

Ever since IOC president Jacques Rogge made the dramatic announcement in Singapore on July 6 2005, we knew that our work was going to have that little extra sparkle… the sparkle of Gold medals! As most people now know, we were already committed to building Westfield Stratford City back then, but that’s all a distant memory now as the eyes of the world are firmly on London for the 2012 Games.

We’re honoured to get to play a part as Westfield Stratford City is the first shopping centre in the history of the games to be at the gateway to the Olympic Park. As I write this, we are just hours to go until the start of the Games, and the sense of excitement here is palpable.

We are of course surrounded by the Olympics – with the Stadium on one side, and the Athlete’s Village on the other. The athletes have been arriving since 17th July – dressed in international tracksuits and are truly bringing an exciting vibe to the centre.

Retailers do take centre stage with us, and each and every one is seizing the Olympic opportunity with both hands. We’re seeing new advertising campaigns, dressing windows, and openings of new and exciting concept stores.

We are prepared and ready for large crowds and we have been working closely with the Games Organisers to help make this event a success. Westfield has also played an integral role with each and every test event on the Park, including this week’s rehearsal #savethesurprise events in the Stadium – the atmosphere has truly been electric.

So, this is the first of three of my postcards from the front line of Olympic retail. Over the next two weeks I will be bringing you an insight into what’s happening down here in the retail trenches, as well as the vibe elsewhere in London at our sister centre over in Shepherd’s Bush. We’re expecting to see both centres at its very best – mixing the best of leisure and entertainment with retail’s finest, but most of all it’s about experience, and we’ve given our Stratford City retailers the best seats in the house for the greatest show on earth for the next fortnight.