National Property Information Centre’s Q3 2019 figures showed there were 1,035 shopping complexes in Malaysia, offering 16.42 million sq m of retail space.
It is expected that 39 more shopping complexes will come on board and another 27 shopping complexes are being planned.
The oversupply of malls has contributed to the struggle and survival of shopping complexes. The retail industry will have to prepare to deal with bigger challenges.
Online platforms will dominate the retail industry this year with more products coming from China, and Lazada and Shopee are expected to lead in the segment. Malls will have to continue to find ways to keep shoppers coming.
In the meantime, Retail Group Malaysia (RGM) has cut its annual retail sales growth forecast for 2019 to 3.7%, from 4.4%.
“The outlook for shopping malls this year will remain challenging, but certain ‘resilient’ segments of retail will continue to thrive,” Sunway Malls and Theme Parks CEO HC Chan said.
