Logo of Phnom Penh Post newspaper Phnom Penh Post - Olympia Plaza to rise on $60M investment

Olympia Plaza to rise on $60M investment

Olympia Plaza to rise on $60M investment

Local conglomerate Overseas Cambodia Investment Corporation (OCIC) will invest $60 million in the construction of Olympia Plaza, a seven-storey shopping mall being built inside the company’s mixed-use Olympia City project in central Phnom Penh, the company confirmed yesterday.

“We will invest $60 million in construction costs alone to build Olympia Plaza,” said Touch Samnang, deputy director-general of OCIC.

Samnang said the upscale shopping centre would cover 100,000 square metres, comprised of seven floors of retail space and two basement levels. He declined to reveal whether a firm had been selected to manage the mall, or details on its expected retail mix.

Meng Chamroeun, chief engineer for the Olympia City project, said that 15 to 20 per cent of the shopping centre has already been built and the remainder is scheduled for completion in mid-2017.

“If there are no changes in the plans, [the mall] will be finished by the middle of 2017,” he said.

Phnom Penh has an undersupply of prime retail space, according to real estate consultancy Knight Frank, but this could change by the time Olympia Plaza opens as a slew of modern shopping centres take shape.

The capital’s retail sector currently comprises 134,143 square metres of net-lettable area (NLA), of which 46 per cent is classified as prime space, Knight Frank said in its latest snapshot of Cambodia’s commercial real estate market.

While it deemed this an undersupply based on the size of the market, a total of 163,438 square metres of NLA is expected to enter the market by 2019 as at least two stand-alone malls and 11 mixed-use shopping centres are planned.

Sung Bonna, president of the Bonna Realty Group, said that the existing and planned retail space should satisfy future demand, but competition will be tight given the capital’s relatively small population of middle- and high-income spenders.

“Market demand will be impacted once new malls open because the new offerings will cannibalise the customers of existing malls,” he said.

Bonna said those able to afford the high prices of retailers in upscale malls such as Aeon and Parkson are more inclined to travel overseas on their brand-name shopping binges, while limited-income consumers can only afford to window shop. This has put pressure on retailers.

“It is hard for retailers to afford for a unit in the new modern malls,” he added.

Base rents for prime real estate in Phnom Penh range from $10 to $22 per square metre per month, in addition to 10 to 25 per cent of the tenant’s monthly sales, according to Knight Frank. Rents for smaller spaces can run up to 10 times higher.

MOST VIEWED

  • Joy as Koh Ker Temple registered by UNESCO

    Cambodia's Koh Ker Temple archaeological site has been officially added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List, during the 45th session of the World Heritage Committee held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on September 17. The ancient temple, also known as Lingapura or Chok Gargyar, is located in

  • Famed US collector family return artefacts to Cambodia

    In the latest repatriation of ancient artefacts from the US, a total of 33 pieces of Khmer cultural heritage will soon return home, according to the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts. In a September 12 press statement, it said the US Attorney’s Office for the

  • Cambodia set to celebrate Koh Ker UNESCO listing

    To celebrate the inscription of the Koh Ker archaeological site on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, the Ministry of Cults and Religion has appealed to pagodas and places of worship to celebrate the achievement by ringing bells, shaking rattles and banging gongs on September 20. Venerable

  • Kampot curfew imposed to curb ‘gang’ violence

    Kampot provincial police have announced measures to contain a recent spike in antisocial behaviour by “unruly’ youth. Officials say the province has been plagued by recent violence among so-called “gang members”, who often fight with weapons such as knives and machetes. Several social observers have

  • PM outlines plans to discuss trade, policy during US visit

    Prime Minister Hun Manet is set to meet with senior US officials and business leaders during his upcoming visit to the US for the UN General Assembly (UNGA), scheduled for September 20. While addressing nearly 20,000 workers in Kampong Speu province, Manet said he aims to affirm

  • Manet touches down in Beijing for high-level meetings

    Prime Minister Hun Manet arrived in Beijing on September 14 for his first official visit to China, where he is slated to attend the 20th China-ASEAN Expo and meet other leaders including Chinese President Xi Jinping. Upon his arrival, Manet laid a wreath at the Monument