New shopping mall hopes Ferris wheel, IMAX theater will attract customers

While several department stores and shopping malls have opened across the nation in recent years, a new shopping complex said it was confident of winning over customers after its launch next month.

"With its three unique qualities, I believe this new-style shopping complex, will become a `must-see' for local people and tourists when it's inaugurated later this year," said Huang Sing-zhong (黃杏中), chairman of the Miramar City Development Inc (美麗華城市發展).

Huang, 77, owner of the Miramar Entertainment Park (美麗華百樂園) in Taipei's Tachih district, expressed confidence at a press conference yesterday that the mall would be able to lure consumers.

Located near the Ministry of Sound nightclub, the complex encompasses two buildings with a total business area of 25,000 ping (82,500m2).

A result of six years of preparation, planning and construction, the complex has integrated features from shopping complexes in Japan and the US, with an emphasis on leisure and recreation, said Huang, while unveiling a credit card co-branded with Macoto Bank (誠泰銀行) yesterday.

Department store revenues in Taipei last year totaled NT$150 billion, and the new store will competing for a share of this.

The nation's leading shopping complex, the Chunghsiao East Road outlet of Pacific Sogo Department Store, earned annual revenue of NT$16 billion last year.

Pinning high hopes on the entertainment features of the Miramar, the development company's president Huang Ku-jung (黃固榮), who is Huang Sing-zhong's younger brother, projected the complex would net NT$500 million revenues per month and issue 300,000 co-branded cards by the year's end.

He lauded the center's rooftop Ferris wheel, the second-largest in the world after the wheel atop the Hip Five shopping center in Osaka, Japan, as a draw for those curious to get a bird's eye view of the greater Taipei area.

The mall also houses the nation's first IMAX movie theater and a nine-screen Warner Village Cinema. The complex can accommodate nearly 3,000 people, making it the second-largest cinema, after the Warner Village complex in Taipei's Xinyi district.

Huang said that the third feature differentiating the mall is two five-star ballrooms, operated by the Sherwood Taipei and the Gloria Prince Hotel.

The younger Huang said as long as the business license is obtained in time, the complex would open for business at the end of next month.

Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store (新光三越) is also expected to join the field of contenders in the fourth quarter, opening its 12th outlet in Taipei's Tienmu district.

"Brand new services and a different product mix will be introduced into this outlet to present a refined, high-quality shopping environment," Shauna Lee (李香萩), spokeswoman for the department store chain, said in a phone interview yesterday.

The President Takashimaya Department Store (統一高島屋百華), is also constructing a complex next to the MRT Taipei City Hall Station. The opening date has not yest been decided, said Anita Lai (賴文琦), public relations manager of President Chain Store Corp (統一超商)