IMPLICATIONS OF HIGH-RISE MALLS IN SINGAPORE

Abstract

Singapore’s retail scene has undergone several transformations. Current retailing facilities have marked a new chapter for the local retail scene as compared to a few decades ago. New forms of retailing facilities have been entering the market, injecting variety and vibrancy to the retail environment. An upcoming trend is the development of high-rise shopping malls (‘vertical’ malls). This is evident from the two new prospective malls in Orchard Road, namely ‘Ion Orchard’ and ‘Orchard Central’. Hence, this study aims to identify some of the key factors affecting patronage of high-rise malls in Singapore. The objectives of this research are (i) to identify the attributes that can affect patronage of high-rise malls, and (ii) to evaluate whether any correlation exists between the identified attributes and the success of high-rise malls. The study was carried out by interviewing some 300 shoppers for their views. Survey data gathered from shoppers in 6 shopping malls were analysed using factor analysis and ANOVA. Six component factors – ‘Facilities’, ‘Internal Building Design’, ‘Overall Building Design’, ‘Movement’, “Tenant Mix’ and ‘Ambience’ emerged from the various variables investigated. Subsequent analysis regarding overall mall perception and differences between high-rise and low-rise malls were made based on these 6 component factors. The study reveals that there are significant factors affecting highrise malls. Age and gender differences were also found to have an impact on some of these factors. This study has several implications and yielded valuable contributions to the research on high-rise malls which are useful to shopping mall developers and management teams.