Ayala Land eyes 78,000 sqm of new retail space
Consistent growth in foot traffic and robust sales in its malls have encouraged real estate giant Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) to pursue the launch of 78,000 square meters (sq m) of retail space this year.
Mariana Zobel de Ayala, ALI leasing and hospitality head, said during a media gathering on Thursday that they saw a “promising” 10-percent growth in foot traffic in 2024.
In turn, sales in some of its newer malls, including One Ayala and Ayala Malls Manila Bay, have more than doubled, Zobel said.
“We have a lot of conviction in the market. We have a lot of conviction in the Filipino consumer,” she added.
This comes amid ALI’s P13-billion push to renovate and “reinvent” some of its legacy malls—Glorietta, Ayala Center Cebu, TriNoma and Greenbelt—as a response to changing consumer behavior.
So far, renovation at these malls are between 40 percent and 60 percent complete, according to Zobel, adding that work was “on track.”
Renovations at TriNoma in Quezon City are scheduled to finish within the first quarter of this year, while improvements at Glorietta, Greenbelt and Ayala Center Cebu are set to be completed by 2026.
Zobel likewise noted that they had already identified about 30,000 sqm of gross leasable area that needed a concept refresh.
“Beyond just the physical experience, we’re also focusing on the programming within the malls,” she said.
Mall pipeline
In all, ALI has around 700,000 sq m of mall space currently either under planning or construction.
Real estate investment management firm Colliers Philippines earlier reported that developers were taking advantage of high demand for “more immersive experiences” inside malls by expanding their food halls, upgrading cinemas and putting up pop-up stores to gauge market sentiment.
As for its hospitality business, ALI aims to complete the renovation of Holiday Inn, Seda BGC, Seda Abreeza, Seda Centrio and Lagen Resort by the third quarter of this year.
As a result of the refreshed properties, average rental rates will increase by around 10 to 15 percent.
“We’re confident that the product that we’re developing is going to justify that increase … we see a lot of potential in domestic tourism and regional tourism,” Zobel said.
