San Pedro gets mall of its own

Stylized sampaguita blossoms adorn the ceiling of Galleria South. —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

San Pedro’s sweet-scented past is celebrated at the new Robinsons Galleria South, which opened recently.

The new shopping mall of Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC) pays tribute to San Pedro’s old reputation as the sampaguita capital of the country by incorporating the national flower in design details and distinctive features.

RLC also honors its host city by calling its new mall Galleria.

It is only the third in RLC’s mall chain, after the flagship commercial establishment in Quezon City, to carry the prestigious name.

With the opening of Robinsons Galleria South, San Pedro City is no longer just the gateway to Laguna.

It finally comes into its own as a self-sustaining, viable population center fully capable of supporting a full service mall.

Frederick Go, RLC president and chief executive officer, said Galleria South “is a very special mall,” as it was in a very special location, the gateway to southern Luzon. “We spared no expense to make this mall very beautiful and very functional,” he said during the mall’s formal opening.

For Mayor Lourdes Cataquiz, who called her city’s new shopping destination “our mall,” naming the place Galleria “is an affirmation of the city’s economic dynamism and attractiveness as an investment destination.”

Arlene Magtibay, Robinsons malls general manager, said several artists had collaborated to make the new Galleria truly distinctive. The art pieces include a five-meter metal sculpture outside the main entrance by Filipino-American artist Jefre Manuel.

The Eat Street Market Hall, which features different restaurants and dining options, showcases a well-thought out decor and murals, she said.

The dining row seeks to recreate the outdoor food park experience indoors.

The JK (Japan-Korea) Town on the third level features shops and dining places inspired by the East Asian countries.

Magtibay also mentioned Robinsons Movieworld’s six digital cinemas, including the Elite VIP cinema that has space for cocktails before a special film showing.

Galleria South is anchored by members of Robinsons commercial family—Robinsons department store and supermarket, Handyman, Toys R Us and Daiso.

The Lingkod Pinoy Center, which Magtibay described as Robinsons’ flagship public service program, makes accessible government agencies like the Social Security System, Land Transportation Office, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration Regional Office.

On the same floor as the cinemas is Robinsons Digiworld, the one-stop destination for the technology-savvy.

Children can have fun at Kidzooona (an indoor park originally from Japan), Sportzone and Tom’s World, or learn and play at PlayLab.

The e-Bingo hall is on the other side of Robinsons Movieworld. There is also KTV for those who love to sing.

The four-story Galleria South is built on the former site of a soda bottling plant, a 3.8-hectare lot on the old national highway. It has about 48,000 square meters of leasable commercial space.