(09 February 2012. Pasay City, Philippines.) SM Prime Holdings, Inc. (SM Prime), the Philippines’ dominant mall developer and operator, is set to open SM City Olongapo on Friday, 10 February 2012. It is the company’s 42nd shopping mall in the Philippines and its very first in the province of Zambales. The new mall has a gross floor area (GFA) of 46,869 square meters (sqm) and occupies 9,259 sqm of land.
SM Prime President Mr. Hans T. Sy said, “The opening of SM City Olongapo is doubly significant for SM Prime, as it is the company’s first shopping mall to be opened this year and it is also the very first SM mall in Zambales Province. As we warmly welcome everyoneto our newest mall, we assure them of the same first-rate, affordable product and service offerings that are enjoyed by millions of loyal shoppers and customers in all SM malls throughout the country.”
SM City Olongapo has a leasable area of 22,462 sqm, 81% of which has already been awarded to various tenants. The shopping mall’s major tenants are SM Department Store and SM Supermarket, which will occupy 11,364 sqm and 3,929 sqm of floor space,respectively. Other mall tenants include BDO, Watsons, Ace Hardware, National Bookstore, Jollibee, and KFC, among others. SM City Olongapo’s major amenities consist of an alfresco dining area, which offers a view of Olongapo’s mountain landscape; three cinemas,with a combined seating capacity of 758; and parking slots for over 300 vehicles.
Olongapo City is a highly urbanized area in Zambales. The first-class city sits right next tothe Subic Bay Freeport Zone, a former United States naval base that is now a major industrial, tourism, and logistics hub. Olongapo is known for its innovative urban management methods and has been cited by international organizations such as the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization).
SM City Olongapo brings to 42 the total number of SM Prime malls all over the country, with a combined GFA of 5.0 million sqm. For the rest of 2012, SM Prime is scheduled to open SM City Lanang in Davao City, SM City General Santos in Southern Mindanao, SM City Consolacion in Cebu, SM City San Fernando in Pampanga, and SM Chongqing in China.
By the end of this year, SM Prime will have 46 malls in the Philippines and five in China with an estimated combined GFA of 6.3 million sqm.