With the opening of the second phase of the Epicenter shopping mall in the Ukrainian city of Chabany (8, Odeske Highway), a new family entertainment park, Epiland, will begin operations, the company's press service told Interfax-Ukraine.

The second phase of the Epicenter shopping mall is set to launch on April 5. On this day, the mall will welcome the opening of tenant stores in its shopping gallery, a food court featuring renowned restaurants, and the Epiland family entertainment park – spanning 5,000 square meters – which will house Ukraine's largest virtual reality zone, exclusive attractions, and an expansive children's playground.

"When designing the concept for the Epiland amusement park in Chabany, we aimed to immerse visitors in a magical world. This is our second project, and we have adhered to the overarching theme of our entertainment network: A Journey Through Space and Time, where each new park serves as a portal to a distinct world. The new Epiland is designed under the concept of Enchanted Forest, transporting visitors into another dimension – a fairy-tale realm where magical flowers and trees grow, giant butterflies and dragonflies soar, and everything is mysterious, beautiful, and cutting-edge," explained Epiland network director Kateryna Cherniak.

According to Cherniak, the company took global trends and competitive market conditions into account when developing the park's concept, focusing on unique entertainment experiences. Notably, Chabany will feature the country's largest virtual reality zone with exclusive simulators, including a Formula 1 race car with a virtual racing simulation, an authentic steering wheel, and a real pilot seat, as well as motorcycle and street racing simulators, jet fighter experiences, maritime adventures, a VR cinema with special effects, and other immersive attractions.

Another major highlight of the park is a children's play area spanning 1,500 square meters, equipped with mazes, trampolines, a ninja park, a climbing wall, a gaming console zone, interactive games, tubing slides, carousels, and climbing structures for the youngest visitors. Other attractions include a themed prize shooting range, an LED car bumper track, state-of-the-art arcade and redemption machines, a waterfall swing with a giant butterfly, laser tag, paintball, hydroball, and the Magic Forest adventure quest, which challenges visitors' agility, logic, and strength.

The second phase of the Epicenter mall will also introduce a new tenant gallery featuring retailers such as Sinsay (1,130 sq. m.), Foxtrot (1,022 sq. m), Victoria's Store (95 sq. m.), FAMO (76 sq. m.), Brabrabra (50 sq. m.), Sekunda (32 sq. m), Bukva (75 sq. m.), Luxoptica (63 sq. m.), Tusso (16 sq. m.), among others.

Additionally, the shopping mall will significantly expand its dining options. Within Epiland, a 600-square-meter Pesto Family restaurant – specializing in Italian cuisine—will be introduced, continuing a successful collaboration with the company's first family entertainment park. Adjacent to the shopping gallery, another food court will open, featuring establishments such as Lviv Croissants (52 sq. m.), Menya Musashi (69 sq. m.), Mr. Grill (52 sq. m.), Merry Berry (29 sq. m.), and the Brewsel coffee shop (26 sq. m.).

"With the launch of the second phase, we anticipate an increase in key performance metrics for the Epicenter shopping mall in Chabany, driven by the synergy of Epicenter's retail formats, tenant stores, and an exclusive family entertainment park. Additional leisure, entertainment, and dining areas will create a comfortable space for prolonged visitor stays, which will positively impact the sales turnover of all participants in the shopping mall's ecosystem," said Kateryna Vesna, Head of Shopping Mall Development at Epicenter.

The first phase of the Epicenter shopping mall in Chabany opened in September last year. The two-story commercial complex, spanning over 96,000 square meters, launched with all Epicenter retail formats, including a 3,000-square-meter Food Market, a 400-square-meter Lapki pet store, a 1,500-square-meter Intersport sporting goods store, a 1,600-square-meter E.Pic children's store, a 1,500-square-meter CE TE electronics and home appliances supermarket, and a 2,600-square-meter Galereya Deco home goods store, among others.

As part of the project, the company also developed an outdoor recreational area with an artificial lake and waterfall, which is expected to host seasonal festivals dedicated to wine, cheese, ice cream, and other themed events. For visitor safety, a large underground parking facility was constructed beneath the shopping mall, serving as a reliable shelter in the event of air raid alerts.

The Epicenter Group of Companies is an omnichannel ecosystem uniting the Epicenter and Nova Linia retail chains, the Epicenterk.ua online store, the Epicenter-Agro agricultural holding, the Epicenter Ceramic Corporation ceramic tile factories, the Osmoloda woodworking enterprise, and logistics facilities.

Before Russia's full-scale invasion, the Epicenter retail network included over 80 shopping centers across Ukraine. Seven locations were destroyed by the war in Mariupol, Nikopol, Bucha, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, and Kherson (two centers). Three additional locations (in Melitopol, Kramatorsk, and another in Kharkiv) remain closed due to occupation, shelling, or proximity to combat zones.

Currently, the group's retail network comprises 71 stores in Ukraine.

According to Ukraine's Unified State Register of Legal Entities, Epicenter K LLC's shareholders include Oleksandr Hereha (51.3%), Halyna Hereha (47.97%), and Tetiana Surzhyk (0.73%).