Hans Sy: There’s ‘more future’ in provincial malls
For Hans Sy, chair of the executive committee of SM Prime Holdings that owns SM Supermalls, there’s “more future” in provincial malls, as he explained during a brief chat with the press at the Oct. 24 opening of the conglomerate’s 87th mall, J Mall, in Mandaue City in Cebu.
“Every time you reach the level of 90 percent,” he said about running a mall in Metro Manila, “the last 10 percent is the hardest. In the provinces, we’re about 70 percent pa rin (still). So, there’s more growth potential.”
Sy added that J Mall’s location is “very good.” It used to house another mall owned by his friends, who eventually sold the property to SM. He recalled one of the former owners telling him, “It was easy to put up a nice mall. We didn’t realize it’s so hard to run a mall.” He turned to us and pointed out, “It wasn’t his line of business. But we’re good friends. So I said, ‘Okay, I’ll take over.’”
In taking over the property, the new owner retained its original structure and Japanese theme, according to SM Supermalls president Steven Tan in an interview also held at J Mall’s opening.
“If you would look around, from the décor and stairwell, those aren’t just patterns. They are Japanese-inspired. Why? Because we’re in the location of Toyoko Inn, a Japanese chain of hotels. This mall is now called J Mall. So when we were conceptualizing it, [we said] why don’t we make it ‘J’ for Japan?”
Tan shared SM’s vision for J Mall: “We wanted to offer something different, very unique. The bones are good, the structure is good. It’s a very good mall, the location is good. But, of course, throughout the years, lahat naman ng klase ng mall, naluluma [all types of mall get old].”
Tan said that while it was “easy to collapse a structure and build from the ground,” they decided to rebuild the property, though it’s “more difficult to rebuild.” They had to replace many elements in the building in terms of utilities and make the floors, for instance, even. “Because we don’t want to confuse our customers. We make it easy for them to navigate the mall.”
J Mall’s Japanese theme could become a model for future SM Supermalls, Tan said. “If we see this is working, and people seem to be excited about it [then we will continue], but of course, we’ll still monitor first. This is the first time we’re doing it in the whole country. There’s no other place to do it but here in Cebu, which is such an important city in the Philippines.”
Japanese terrace
One area in the new mall that could be replicated in other SM Supermalls across the country is the Izakaya Terrace, which features a row of Japanese restaurants. Established ones, such as Botejyu and Yayoi, easily attract attention, but Tan pointed out that those eateries offer something new for the J Mall crowd, including the night owls.
“What you see here is not yet final,” he clarified. “There will be a lot of offerings, a lot of excitement, so watch out, almost every day, we’ll be launching something. Right now, the mall is open and 60 percent occupied. By the end of November, it will be 70 percent. By the end of December, it will be 80 percent.”
J Mall’s opening on Oct. 24 was an exclusive event attended by SM group’s executives and other employees, as well as the mall’s tenants and their guests. Among the guests was renowned furniture designer Kenneth Cobonpue, who made the “Linya” hanging sculpture that makes an imposing presence in the mall. He told Lifestyle he was commissioned to do the artwork and barely realized what he’s accomplished.
The festivities continued the following day, when the mall officially opened to the public. SM’s people, clad in cherry blossom-pink shirts, gathered at the main entrance to anticipate the arrival of the mall’s first visitors. On the other side of the glass doors, eager mallgoers started lining up a few hours before the mall’s 10 a.m. opening. They were then treated to bargain deals from different stores in the mall and many of them participated in promotional games.
Excitement was also greatly felt by the tenants. Salon de Thé was represented by Jonard John P. Koa, chief digital officer of its parent company, The French Baker. He told us J Mall is only the second store of the upscale tea and coffee shop after it opened in SM Megamall a few years ago.
Sharing the same upbeat sentiments was Scents Manila’s area manager Levi Joy Lleva. She said the fragrance brand has other stores in different malls in Cebu, but having a space in J Mall is likewise important to them.
