A NEW six-storey US$40 million shopping centre will open in Phnom Penh before 2011, the owner of the development said Monday.

“We have completed 70 percent of the whole project and will open our doors to customers at the end of this year,” said Ear Kim Keng, managing director of Happiness City, where the 100,000-square-metre Young’s Commercial Shopping Centre is being built on reclaimed swamp land, about 100 metres on the eastern side of the Cambodian-Japanese Friendship Bridge.

“We have attracted 52 percent of the clients we need to rent our space so far,” said Ear Kim Keng.

He added that negotiations are ongoing with KFC, Pizza Company, Cambodian Public Bank, Canadia Bank and City Mart – which he said is interested in a 1,000-square-metre space.

Rental prices at the centre are set at around $300 per month for a 3-metre-by-4-metre shop space. If a client rents a store for 10 years, he can stay for 100 years without charge, thanks to a new promotion.

The capital already has a large number of one-stop shopping centres. The first major mall, Sorya Shopping Centre, opened for business in 2002. It was followed by Pencil Mall, Sydney Mall, Paragon Cambodia, Sovanna and City Mall.

The managers of Young’s potential competitors are not concerned by the new threat.

“We are not worried because we have a good location, good car parking, and we will run promotions such as music concerts and lucky draws every month,” said Chheang Meng, manager of Bayon Shopping Centre in Phnom Penh.

Lam Sopheap, general manager of Sorya, said: “Our shopping mall is still number one because we always update our place to be fresh and fun for customers.”