1 Shamelin aims 80%-90% tenancy before 1H2011

KUALA LUMPUR: 1 Shamelin Sdn Bhd, which manages the 9-storey 1 Shamelin mall in Cheras, is confident that 80% to 90% of the retail centre's leasing space will be taken up before it opens in mid-June next year, said senior complex manager Wong Chee Keong.

Currently, over 50% of the mall has been taken up, he told reporters after the soft launch of 1 Shamelin on Thursday, Oct 28.

The space taken up is the development's "street bazaar" located on the lower ground, ground and upper ground floors.

"Ten percent of the mall's space, which has been allocated for sale, have already been taken up," he added.

Wong said that due to some changes in the tenant mix, the rooftop carpark had to be converted into an entertainment floor to suit the needs of the tenants.

Wong denied that the project was delayed, despite earlier reports stating that the mall was scheduled to have opened in 2009.

Wong said the mall hopes to tap into the catchment of about 500,000 residents in the Taman Perkasa Shamelin and Pandan Cheras areas.

"We are also hoping to promote our mall to the smaller towns in the different states. We want to provide shuttle busses from Pudu bus station for their convenience and to promote it as a place to eat and shop.

"We target 1.2 million visitors per month in the first year, and we'll slowly increase the target after that," he added.

The mall will comprise a gross built-up area of 1 million sq ft and a net lettable area of 500,000 sq ft spread over 1,310 outlets, with each outlet having an average size of 120 sq ft.

Out of its nine floors, six floors will house retail outlets while the remaining floors will contain parking space.

1 Shamelin is developed by Lambang Ehsan Sdn Bhd, which, along with 1 Shamelin Sdn Bhd, is a subsidiary of Y & Y Group. It has a gross development value of RM408 million.

Also present at the soft launch were representatives from 1 Shamelin's four major tenants, namely Tanjong Golden Village Cinemas, One Pioneers Badminton Academy, Amp Square Karaoke and CYC Mega Leisure.