New Setia City Mall 100% tenanted, expansion underway

KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 23): SP Setia Bhd’s Setia City Mall – which recently welcomed Swedish fast-fashion clothing retailer H&M Hennes & Mauritz AB (H&M)’s second store in Malaysia – is 100% tenanted within six months of the mall’s soft opening in mid-May this year.

“Our mall is doing very well. The weekend crowd is fantastic, 60,000 visitors during weekends,” Tan Sri Liew Kee Sin, SP Setia’s president and CEO, told reporters at the developer’s newly completed Setia City Convention Centre in Setia Alam, Shah Alam.

Tenants at the three-storey retail mall with 700,000 sq ft of net lettable area, built in partnership with a unit of Sydney-based Lend Lease Corp Ltd, include Parkson, Golden Screen Cinemas, Harvey Norman, Wangsa Bowl, Fitness First, MPH Bookstore, Daiso and Courts.

According to the company’s website, Setia City Mall is worth RM450 million in gross development value (GDV) with phase two slated to begin in 2014.

“We’ve only used 16 acres, so there are 14 acres more to go [to expand the mall],” Liew said, jubilantly telling reporters plans are already underway to firm-up the hotel that will sit between the mall and the convention centre.

“We haven’t named the hotel yet, Setia Hotel or Hotel Setia… more details will be announced soon,” Liew said, adding that SP Setia intends to manage the hotel themselves.

He was speaking to reporters on sidelines of the company’s extraordinary general meeting (EGM) after shareholders passed a proposed share placement of up to 15% of the company's issued share base that’s expected to raise about RM1 billion to fund its projects abroad, including the London Battersea development.

Setia City Mall, which also overlooks a 10.5 acre-landscaped park with a water-jet plaza and children play area, is for sale “at the right price”, Liew said.

“Everything can be sold at the right price. Our mall is still new… it can only command a high price in a few years’ time,” he said, adding that the plan is not to sell but to further enhance the development within SP Setia’s flagship township Setia Alam in Shah Alam, Selangor.

Liew said the Setia City Mall enclave -- with planned offices, apartments and the convention centre -- has the potential of matching IGB Corp Bhd’s Mid Valley City Development where two malls was injected into the IGB Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) and listed this year.

“People thought Liew Kee Sin had gone mad in 2002 when we said we’re paying RM600 million for 4,000 acres of plantation land in the middle of nowhere… Look at how the place had transformed now,” said Liew, jubilantly showing reporters around the developer’s convention centre where he said wedding banquets are already being held.

“Weekends you can see people taking wedding photos at the park,” he added, referring to the spot where Danish rock band Michael Learns To Rock performed on June 23, to mark the mall’s grand opening the same day.

“We want this place to also have a vibrant arts scene,” he said, letting on that a cultural arts centre is being planned in the vicinity.

After one decade, Setia Alam is only “50% to 60%” done, Liew tells theedgemalaysia.com, repeating SP Setia’s “live, learn, work, play” mantra.

“This place has transformed a lot, but we want to do so much more,” he said.