Seri Center seeking major anchor tenant

Business News - Thursday December 20, 2007

RETAILING / SHOPPING CENTRES

Seri Center seeking major anchor tenant

PITSINEE JITPLEECHEEP

The operator of the Seri Center shopping complex on Srinakarin Road is negotiating with large retail operators for one to serve as an anchor for the complex next year.

The company is in talks with a handful of firms and expects to conclude a deal next year, said Vorrapong Sukteera-anantachai, the assistant managing director of Seri Center Management Co.

He said than an agreement would result in the establishment of an air-conditioned premium wet market, to complement the @ease department store and discount store in the same complex.

The new retail anchor would require retail space of between 5,000 and 8,000 square metres and provide a wide range of staple goods.

The company also plans to spend another 20 million baht to renovate its shopping street zone on the first floor, increasing space by 30% to 2,600 square metres. It will move some electrical appliance and furniture shops and fill the vacant area with fashion products. The renovation would begin in May and would be completed in July.

Another 20 million baht would be allocated for renovating the IT zone on the second floor in the middle of 2009, adding more IT and digital products as well as high-end goods for a wider range of customers.

"I am quite happy with our performance this year. Despite the country's economic slowdown, we have maintained visitor numbers and grown our sales by 8%, in line with our earlier expectations," Mr Vorrapong said.

He said the steady sales growth has been helped by the company's successes in positioning itself as a family retail centre.

Seri Center sees an average of 30,000 visitors on weekdays and 40,000 people on weekends.

Mr Vorrapong said he had noticed that the overall shopping environment at Seri Center had improved dramatically because of the increasing number of customers from new residential projects in the Sri Nakarin area. Business has also improved with the opening of Suvarnabhumi Airport.

The company started to renovate its centre last year and is scheduled to complete the process by 2009. The occupancy rate at the center is about 92% and the remaining 8% of the total 85,000 square metres is reserved for rental offices.

With the new shopping ambience, the company expects sales next year to increase by at least 8% from the estimated 470 million baht this year.

Bangkok Post