Istra
Istria is the biggest Adriatic peninsula, next to Zagreb the most promising Croatian region and one of the densely populated in Croatia. Pazin is the administrative and Pula the economic centre, having the highest population percentage. Istria is famous for the beauty of its towns, coast and the green inland, cultural peculiarities and rich history. Beside natural beauties and abundant touristic offer Istria is economically very developed. The gross domestic product per capita in Istria is right next to Zagreb and slightly higher than the national average. The same goes for the average personal income per capita.
Istria holds the greatest total of all touristic visits and overnights in Croatia, 90% of which are foreign citizens. Tourism is the most important economic branch, accompanied with real estate investment and significant construction of new capacities. Not like so many other Croatian regions, Istria has well developed industrial sector, and has the lowest rate of unemployment in the country together with Zagreb. The location of Istria, bordering with Slovenia and Italy, represent the western gate of Croatia. Traffic connections (roadways, railways, airways and seaways) with the rest of the country and the region make Istria very attractive for its citizens, tourists and investors.
Istra offering
Although it is one of the most developed regions in Croatia, Istria does not have the offer that answers the needs of its citizens and numerous visitors.
The buyers in Istria miss the diverse assortment of goods and greater amount of luxury brands, the demand for these is far greater than the current offer in the region. The lack of space is a barrier for many domestic and international brands interested in answering the growing demand and entering the Istrian market. Traditional shopping zones in the old town centers with their limited amount of small shops do not allow further offer expansion or the arrival of new brands. The citizens of Istria are used to traveling when they go shopping. They go to Italy, Slovenia and recently to Rijeka since the opening of the first shopping center there. Histria Mall Poreč finally offers a solution to the lack of modern market space with all the accompanying facilities.
Poreč
Poreč is situated on the west coast of the Istrian peninsula. It is one of the most attractive touristic destinations in Istria, with the greatest total of touristic overnights. Poreč numbers 17 000 citizens in the large city area and is the second populated town in Istria. It has very good road connections with the other towns in the region and with the bigger cities as are Trieste, Ljubljana, Rijeka and Zagreb.
It is only 60km far from the international airport in Pula. As in other Istrian towns, the market offer consists of the limited amount of small shops in the center of the town and a few big box shops offering consumer goods outside town center. Fashion and luxury brands able to rival a shopping center do not exist at all.
Istria Facts
Poreč Facts
Purchasing Power
- Over 220,000 residents
- 2,7 mill tourist arrivals in Istria/yearly
- One of the most atractive tourist destionations in Croatia
- The largest share in total number of tourist arrivals
- The 3rd most populated county in Croatia
- The lowest unemployment rate
- Excelent traffic connections
- International airport in Pula
- City center area has over 17,000 residents
- Wide area over 32,000 residents
- Cca 800,000 tourist arrivals in Poreč/yearly
- Int Airport Pula- 50km
- The most atractive tourist destionation in Istria and Croatia
- The strongest purchasing power in Croatia (same as Zagreb capital city)
- Istria GDP per capita EUR 11.212 (2008-Colliers)
- Average daily tourist consumption EUR 74.5 (Coliiers est)
- Over 6% contributed to the total GDP of Croatia
- The 2nd highest net wages in Croatia (after City of Zagreb)
