Shopping centre now operating under its third name

Martin and Barbara Surman were not aware of the name change

A shopping centre now has the third name of its 52-year life after it changed hands last year.

The site in Luton opened as the Arndale Centre in 1972 and was renamed The Mall Luton in 2006, but it has now been changed to Luton Point.

Shoppers said new blue signs had given the building "a bit of a facelift" and it "looked smart".

The company behind the rebrand said it represented its "unique positioning at the heart of the town, reflecting the centre’s place as a meeting point within the community".

Tracey (left) and Pauline said they had noticed the signs had been changed from pink to blue

Barbara and Martin Surman, from Dunstable, who said they still called the building "the Arndale", said it had been "massively improved" recently.

"It's very smart. They now need to do the rest of the town," Mrs Surman said.

Shoppers Tracey and Pauline, who also still referred to the shopping centre as "the Arndale", said the new branding "looked all right".

Collins, who has lived in Luton for a few months, said the rebranding was worth it and had given the building "a bit of a facelift".

He added: "It makes sense. You have the health centre here, you have the mall here, you have everything you can think of, so you can shop and meet a few friends."

Collins said Luton Point was a place where people could easily meet

Roy Greening, the centre director, said: "The team here have worked so hard over the past few months to get us ready for this transition, and it’s incredible to see it all come together."

The Luton Point website will have the option to be switched to Urdu, Polish and Romanian, which are the top three languages after English spoken in the town.

The centrepiece of a flamingo water statue was a feature when the Arndale Centre opened in 1972

The 900,000 sq ft (about 85,000 sq m) shopping centre, which has more than 120 shops, was purchased by Frasers Group, owned by Sports Direct boss Mike Ashley, in March 2023.

Luton Point is in the middle of town, near the iconic town hall