District Centre Management. in the way it is understood in this project. is a relatively new discipline on the border of urban development. economic development and city marketing. It is based on the fact that many local communities in NWE are characterised by a polycentric structure: Besides the inner city there are several districts at the outskirts with evolved centres. These district centres provide the local population with retail and services and are very important for local employment. While retail in the inner city has often been able to stabilise due to city marketing. many district centres are nowadays economically and structurally weakened. Due to changes in shopping habits and consumer behaviour (growing mobility and development of large-scale retail facilities in the open countryside) local spending power drifts to the inner city and the surrounding countryside. In the district centres. bigger companies can survive but the existence... of SME is more and more put at jeopardy.Increasing shop vacancies are the first symptoms showing the urgent need for action. Within the transnational project MANDIE. the partners aim at stopping this declining process and rather enhancing the attractiveness and economic performance of district centres in NWE towns and cities. Through transnational exchange of experience and best practice. innovative solutions for similar problems shall be developed. implemented and evaluated jointly. The results shall be disseminated to other towns and cities via Transnational Vocational Training. a Lecture Tool Kit for study courses and a Guide on Innovative Business Practices in District Centres. The main objectives are: Understanding district centres. defining and promoting a DCM approach in NWE. developing transferable methods to enhance the attractiveness and economic performance of pilot districts. knowledge transfer between different stakeholders (science. economy. administrations). Achievements: The results and findings of MANDIE which have been elaborated and proved during the project's running period are available in form of a threepart guide. This guide contains the following features: • Manual for District Centre Managers. Results of the Project MANDIE (available in English and German)• Survival Kit for Retail in Suburban Districts. A smart guide to successful retailing in declining areas (available in English and French)• Toolbox. Examples of Good Practice for Vibrant Distrct Centres (available in English and German)http://mandie.eurob.org/index.php?cmd=download&subcmd=downloads/DVMANDIEProjekt-GuideEN.pdf