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Gibraltar proudly celebrated 300 years of British sovereignty in 2004. Originally a fortress town, Gibraltar’s strategic location, its staunch allegiance to the Crown and the traditional defiance of its leaders are reminiscent of Asterix and his famous Gauls.
The three principal industries in Gibraltar are the Finance Centre (Gibraltar is an offshore tax-haven), Tourism and last but not least, tax-free Shopping. |
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For the last 50 years, Gibraltar has earned a reputation as a busy retail hub situated on the southern tip of Spain. As a tax-free British colony, the Main Street serves as a catchment area for a large, growing population of British expats who have made the Costa del Sol their permanent home (census estimates for 2003 put the number of British expatriates living in Spain at over 1.5 million). Accordingly, shopping tastes in Gibraltar are predominantly British. |
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It is for this reason that British household names like BHS, Arcadia, Marks & Spencer, La Senza, Monsoon and Morrisons have all set up shop on Gibraltar’s Main Street, specifically to attract business from millions of visiting British tourists and expats alike.
The Main Street retail climate has, over the last 30 years, evolved from a handful of happy-go-lucky bazaars, selling everything from cheap underwear to transistor radios, into an international shopping centre made up of sophisticated specialist boutiques and department stores and sporting some of the best brand names in the world. |
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Because of the Main Street’s high-density daily footfall, particularly over the weekends, most of the important brands are represented in at least four or five locations, in order to maximize visibility and accessibility for customers.
Gibraltar’s official currency is the British Pound Sterling, although most visitors pay in Euro or U.S. Dollars, both of which are widely accepted locally. |
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