Megaworld Lifestyle Malls wins big at Retail Asia Awards 2024

It secured the Mall of the Year - Philippines, Marketing Initiative of the Year - Philippines, and Visual Merchandising of the Year - Philippines categories during the programme.

Premier lifestyle malls operator Megaworld Lifestyle Malls emerged victorious at the Retail Asia Awards 2024 with three major wins for the continued transformation of its flagship mall Eastwood City, its reinvention of the movie experience through the Uptown Tempur Cinema, as well as the Newport Mall-seum — a pioneering fusion of art, culture, and commerce within the retail space.

Distinguished by its innovative design and diverse array of leisure and entertainment offerings, Eastwood City came out as one of Manila's premier lifestyle hubs, garnering widespread acclaim and recognition that includes being hailed as the Philippines' first accredited tourism entertainment complex and first pet-friendly mall.

In the past year, it faced challenges in terms of the emergence of new shopping centres within its immediate trade area and the Filipinos’ evolving preferences. As such, it embarked on a transformation journey to reinforce its position as a top-of-mind lifestyle destination.

The mall cultivated its strong relationship with its retail partners and implemented a rezoning strategy as it looked to revitalise and reinvent its tenant mix with the goal of elevating the customer journey and providing experiences that go beyond the usual shopping and dining.

In a bid to foster an active lifestyle within its community, the mall welcomed renowned global athleisure brands, also brought in innovative fitness gym concepts. It also reinvented its spaces to introduce innovative and immersive attractions that resonate with families and patrons of all ages. Amongst these are experiential destinations and its franchising of the global multi-activity indoor park operator SuperPark.

Meanwhile, Eastwood City also revamped its tenant mix, bringing in a diverse array of dining establishments and expanded its roster of restaurants by offering a whole new world of flavours via chef-driven restaurants and popular homegrown concepts along with local favourites.

As the country’s first pet-friendly mall, it also launched new pet-centric concepts to cater its to community of pet-lovers, including its very own pet hotel and cafe, as well as the first-of-its-kind dog cafe restaurant in the Philippines.

The mall also featured sustainability initiatives designed to enhance energy efficiency and promote sustainable practices and responsible stewardship amongst its mall partners. This included the establishment of its own charging stations for all types of electric vehicles to cater to the growing demand of environmentally-conscious Filipinos.

Through its relentless pursuit of excellence and innovation, Eastwood City not only reaffirmed its position as being amongst Manila's most exciting lifestyle destinations, but also delivered outstanding business results in 2023. It achieved a record-high occupancy rate of 95%, compared to 2022’s 83%. This translated into a 45% increase in annual footfall to 14.8 million, as well as a 60% surge in sales for mall partners to US$145m in the past year.

“By forging key partnerships, reinventing its spaces and pursuing the route of retail entertainment, Eastwood City has evolved into a dynamic lifestyle destination, perfectly attuned to the pulsating rhythm of the present and catering to the diverse tastes of its vibrant community,” the company said.

Megaworld Lifestyle Malls won the Mall of the Year - Philippines category for this venture.

Reinventing the silver screen

With the COVID-19 pandemic swiftly transforming the Philippine entertainment industry, the traditional cinema experiences were impacted amidst the rising prominence of streaming platforms.

Megaworld Lifestyle Malls sought to inject freshness into the entertainment landscape and reignite the allure of big-screen viewing by introducing the groundbreaking concept of the country’s first-ever bed cinema, Uptown Tempur Cinema.

Made possible through a strategic partnership with leading first-rate bed provider Tempur, the visionary initiative did not only confront the urgent need to reinvigorate interest in cinema amongst audiences, but also symbolise a paradigm shift in the realm of entertainment.

Uptown Tempur Cinema featured 28 premium fully-reclining Tempur beds equipped with pillows and remote-operated controls. It also integrated state-of-the-art Dolby Atmos audio technology and hotel-grade housekeeping services provided by the esteemed Megaworld Hotels and Resorts.

The launch of Uptown Tempur Cinema delivered excellent business results with more than 12,000 tickets sold and revenues exceeding US$213,000 from November 2023 to January 2024. This reflected an investment gain of US$204,000 and an ROI of 2,256.94%, with total spent for the launch and subsequent special screenings reaching US$9,000.

Online visits to Megaworld Cinemas website and ticket reservations also increased by 30%, whilst total online transactions exceeded 40,000.

“Megaworld Lifestyle Malls has not only introduced a new way to enjoy films on the silver screen; it has also set a new standard for cinematic indulgence by marrying luxury, comfort, and cutting-edge technology.

The company brought home the Marketing Initiative of the Year - Philippines category win for the immersive cinema experience at Uptown Tempur Cinema.

Cultural renaissance of retail space

With malls being confronted by the rise of online shopping and evolving consumer preferences, innovative strategies must be implemented to sustain the relevance of lifestyle malls in today’s retail landscape.

Megaworld Lifestyle Malls introduced the Newport Mall-seum to address this pain point.

The Newport Mall-seum initiative provided a vital platform for local artists to showcase their talent and creations beyond expanding the mall's offerings by transforming a segment of Newport Mall into a fully-fledged museum. A notable aspect of the “mall-seum” is its adept integration of art into the retail environment through curated collections spanning paintings, sculptures, and sustainable art.

This attraction had continued to effectively draw crowds, amplifying footfall and ensuring sustained engagement with all of the mall’s offerings. It also leveraged social media platforms and media partnerships, establishing a robust digital presence, sparking online conversations and enticing new visitors.

Since the launch of the Mall-seum, Newport Mall experienced a remarkable surge in both total sales and footfall. From October 2021 to March 2024, total sales skyrocketed to $11.3m and footfall reached over 1.12 million visitors. These notable increases underscored the positive impact of the Mall-seum's launch on Newport Mall's overall performance and visitor engagement.

“The Newport Mall-seum serves as a masterpiece of effective visual merchandising, seamlessly merging art, culture, and commerce to enrich the retail experience. Megaworld not only rejuvenates traditional retail spaces, but also fosters community engagement and social responsibility by infusing Newport Mall with cultural vibrancy,” the company said.

Megaworld Lifestyle Malls received the Visual Merchandising of the Year - Philippines category win for this pioneering initiative.

Retail Asia Awards honours companies that have recently launched innovative retail projects or initiatives, as well as industry leaders that have propelled their respective brands to maintain a competitive edge.

The Retail Asia Awards is presented by Retail Asia Magazine. To view the full list of winners, click here. If you want to join the 2025 awards programme and be acclaimed for your company's exceptional products or initiatives in the Retail industry, please contact Jane Patiag at [email protected].