SM opens 60th mall

SM Prime Holdings Inc., which operates the country’s largest shopping mall chain, opened its 60th mall in the country Friday, a statement showed.

SM Prime, also involved in residential development, leisure properties and hotels, said it had opened SM City East Ortigas.

The mall, mainly targeting customers in the eastern part of Metro Manila, spans over 80,000 square meters in gross floor area.

SM Prime president Jeffrey Lim said the opening comes just ahead of the Christmas holidays, a period typically marked by a surge in consumer spending.

“This mall is set to redefine shopping and entertainment particularly in the eastern part of Metro Manila. Our new mall reinforces our commitment to continue expanding in the country given the economy’s strong performance,” Lim said.

The group’s other malls nearby include SM Megamall in Mandaluyong, SM Center Pasig and SM Marikina. There are also SM Taytay, SM Masinag, SM Angono and SM San Mateo in Rizal.

Its presence there reflected “the growth and progress in these areas,” the builder said.

As with previous projects, SM City East Ortigas will open with almost 80 percent of its space leased out.

The two-level mall will house SM’s flagship retail brands The SM Store and SM Supermarket; and specialty stores such as Uniqlo, Watsons, SM Appliance Center and Ace Hardware.

SM Prime opened SM-Cherry Congressional last Nov. 25 in Quezon City with around 13,000 sqm in GFA, as well as SM City San Jose Del Monte in Bulacan last April with 101,000 sqm in GFA and SM City Trece Martires in Cavite last May 2016 with 84,000 sqm in GFA.

SM Prime has 22 malls in Metro Manila, 29 in Luzon outside of Metro Manila, five in the Visayas and four in Mindanao.

SM Prime also has six malls in China. This brings the combined GFA to 8.6 million sqm.

The company is a subsidiary of Henry Sy Sr.’s SM Investments Corp., a conglomerate that is also a major player in the country’s banking and retail segments.