SM Prime expands footprint in Bicol

MANILA, Philippines — SM Prime Holdings Inc., the property developer of the Sy Group, continues to expand its mall footprint in the Bicol Region, hitching a ride on the continued easing of mobility restrictions in the country.

SM Prime is set to open SM City Sorsogon tomorrow (Oct. 28).

It has been continuously expanding its presence nationwide by opening malls across the country.

The company has lined up more expansion activities with the return of foot traffic in malls and the steady recovery of the retail sector.

In the first half of the year, SM Retail’s net income also grew by 91 percent to P7 billion, benefitting from efficiencies across all retail formats. Revenues rose by 18 percent to P163.7 billion, buoyed by the return of crowds in physical stores and malls.

“The strong performance of retail in the first six months of 2022 not only speaks of the resilience of consumption in the Philippines despite economic headwinds, said Dhinno Tiu, The SM Store executive vice president for Operations and Sales Support.

SM Prime’s new mall in Sorsogon is located at the heart of Sorsogon City in Sorsogon Province. It spans 40,000 square meters of gross floor area providing two levels of shopping, dining, and entertainment destinations that will further boost the city and province’s socioeconomic, cultural and leisure activities.

It will open with 85 percent of leased-space already awarded.

SM City Sorsogon’s opening will be led by The SM Store, SM Supermarket, Watsons, Miniso, Surplus Shop, Ace Hardware, Sports Central, SM Appliance, BDO, Levi’s, and Crocs.

The opening of SM City Sorsogon marks SM Prime’s 81st mall in the Philippines.

At present, SM Prime has 57 malls in the provincial areas of the country and 24 malls in Metro Manila.

SM Prime, under the leadership of its president Jeffrey Lim, remains committed to its role as a catalyst for economic growth, helping create vibrant and dynamic communities in different parts of the country.