Robinsons takes its turn to update malls
Flagship Robinsons malls are set to get a major facelift to keep pace with other developers that pursue renovations as consumer needs rapidly evolve.
Mybelle GoBio, president and CEO of Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC), confirmed to reporters last week that they would soon announce the developer’s mall reinvention program. First in line are the older flagship malls.
“It will be a continuous [program], and it will be the first of such a scale that we will be announcing,” GoBio said during a press conference.
She added that this would be part of the company’s “premiumization” strategy.
RLC is currently aiming to double its net income to P25 billion by 2030.
The company is investing P125 billion in the upgrade of their projects across business units, including offices and hotels.
Mall reinvention has been a major undertaking of top developers in the Philippines. Companies like Ayala Land Inc. and SM Prime Holdings Inc. are investing billions in the renovation of their biggest malls.
Higher lease rates
In joining competitors in this pursuit, GoBio said modern facilities would justify the premium pricing of their lease rates. Thus, the effort would give RLC better margins.
“Also, consumer preferences are evolving … they’re looking for more experiential offerings. That’s what we’re trying to address through premiumization,” GoBio said.
Apart from RLC’s flagship Robinsons Malls across the country, it also has upscale malls like Opus in Quezon City and Nustar in Cebu City.
In its 2024 report, real estate broker Colliers Philippines said that developers were redesigning their existing retail spaces to introduce new concepts and become “more experiential [and] less transactional.”
Developers were taking advantage of the high demand for more immersive experiences inside malls. They are expanding their food halls, upgrading cinemas and putting up pop-up stores to gauge market sentiment.
Asked whether expanding their current malls was part of their redesign strategy, GoBio said they were open to increasing their gross leasable area “where there is an opportunity.”
Otherwise, she said they would focus first on redevelopment.
