SHOPPING CENTRES IN CHINATOWN : OLD VS NEW

Abstract

While attentions are often focused on retail developments along the Orchard Belt area and increasingly placed on the suburban areas such as Northpoint and Sogo Tampines, the retail performance in Chinatown has not been of great interest lately and is felt to be facing the risk of being neglected. In view of this, the performance of shopping centres in Chinatown will be studied to examine the retail market in this part of the central area. Firstly, the evolution of retail developments in Chinatown form the background for the study. The stages from the early settlements to the implementation of sale of site programmes and finally to the present where more modern shopping centres take their places among the old developments are highlighted. Secondly, the differences between the older and new generation shopping centres are presented by examining features of the centres such as design, tenant mix, promotion and maintenance, analysing the catchment areas and evaluating their retail performances through parameters such as rental rates, occupancy rates and shoppers' count. The findings have shown that the better performance of People's Park Complex despite its age is attributed to factors such as favourable accessibility, complementary facilities and good mix of trades. Chinatown Point, being a new centre, appeals to shoppers in terms of their architectural design and high maintenance standards but is viewed by shoppers in Chinatown as too upmarket. Finally, the changing land use patterns within the vicinity and their implications together with the preferences of the general public are presented to give an overview of the likely future directions of retail developments in Chinatown.