From its humble origins as a shoe store in downtown Manila, SM has become a household name all throughout the Philippines. Nowhere is the retail giant’s ubiquitous presence more keenly felt than in Metro Manila, home to no less than fifteen different SM Malls. Among these are three of the biggest in the country: SM North EDSA, SM Megamall, and SM Mall of Asia.
In addition to ranking among the world’s top 15 largest malls, all three SM malls are strategically located along Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA), one of the most vital thoroughfares in the metro. North EDSA and Mall of Asia take up opposite ends of the highway, with Megamall adjacent to the Ortigas business district somewhere at the middle.
Officially opened in mid-2006, SM Mall of Asia (MOA) stands on 42 hectares of reclaimed land fronting Manila Bay. The massive one-stop complex includes the mall proper, SM’s corporate headquarters, and an ever-growing list of hotels, condos, and office buildings.
SM Mall of Asia can be accessed via main roads such as EDSA and Roxas Boulevard, which runs perpendicular to it. Those taking public transportation can board a jeepney either at Pasay Rotonda or near the intersection of Gil Puyat (Buendia) and Taft Avenue, getting off right in front of the mall. Just keep your eyes peeled for the MOA roundabout, which features a massive Universal Studios-esque steel globe that doubles as an LED billboard at night.
A radical departure from the typical design of most SM malls, Mall of Asia boasts a dynamic geometric façade and a unique combination of indoor and outdoor retail/dining spaces. The indoor spaces are enhanced by bright interiors and well-placed curvilinear skylights, while the outdoor spaces feature quaint brick walkways and the odd art installations scattered like Easter eggs all over. Such quirky design touches are the hallmark of Arquitectonica, the renowned US-based architecture firm that partnered in the MOA project.
In addition to the mall proper, MOA is surrounded by a handful of satellite structures serving complementary functions. At the leftmost side of the mall, for instance, are the Mall Of Asia Arena, the SMX Convention Center and the Shrine of Jesus Church. The MOA Arena has a distinctive eye-shaped façade, and is connected to a parking annex with an equally eyecatching honeycomb-like exterior.
Image courtesy of smmallofasia.com
Mall of Asia consists of four subsections: the Main Mall at the center, two side buildings with multi-level paid parking garages, and the Entertainment Mall at the back. All subsections feature an eclectic variety of shops, restaurants and boutiques catering to an equally wide variety of tastes.
The Main Mall houses a majority of MOA’s leasable retail space, along with the food court and an Olympic-sized ice skating rink. The front entrance of the Main Mall leads to the Concierge Desk and an expansive indoor atrium often used as event space. Found throughout the Main Mall are some of SM’s in-house anchor stores such as the SM Appliance Center (electronics), Surplus Shop (discount apparel), Kultura Filipino (Philippine-made handicrafts, products and home décor) and Toy Kingdom. Other renowned brands found here include Forever 21, Uniqlo, Cotton On, Zara, TopShop and Muji.
On either side of the Main Mall are buildings housing the SM Department Store (lefthand side) and SM Hypermarket (righthand side), both with multi-level parking. A neat bit of trivia: Mall of Asia’s indoor parking garage was one of the first in the country to implement a state-of-the-art light sensor system that lets drivers know at a glance which slots are vacant in the otherwise mazelike setting.
At street level, both side buildings have a selection of restaurants serving a worldwide roster of cuisines. Meanwhile, the second levels of either building are a fascinating picture of small-scale market segmentation: the Hypermarket side mostly consists of electronics stores, while the Department Store side has mostly hair & beauty salons. The Hypermarket building’s second level is also the site of Teleperformance’s Pasay office and call center floor.
As its name suggests, the Entertainment Mall houses most of MOA’s venues for entertainment and recreation, among them an IMAX theater and nine cinemas. On the side facing the bay are a selection of family restaurants and the Music Hall, Mall of Asia’s open-air event space. Also here are the Bowling Center (for bowling and billiards) and the Science Discovery Center for kids.
If you need a break from the mall’s air-conditioned interiors, you can step outside for a breath of fresh sea air at SM By The Bay. The waterfront strip is accessible from the Entertainment Mall via two connecting overpasses along Seaside Boulevard.
The defining feature of SM By The Bay is its paved esplanade, great for viewing the waters and signature sunsets of Manila Bay. On especially clear days one can see as far as the mountainous silhouette of Bataan, on the bay’s opposite shore. You may sample any of the esplanade’s waterfront restaurants or hop on one of the amusement park rides with the kiddies.
Near the southern edge of the esplanade is the MOA Eye, an observation wheel standing about 55 meters (180 feet) tall and opened near the end of 2011. Admittedly the MOA Eye is nowhere near as tall as its UK-based namesake, the London Eye. If you are looking to take in the surrounding Manila landscape from a whole new angle, though, it’s worth taking for a spin (pun intended). Just be sure to ride on a clear day, and bring your family since the gondolas must accommodate a minimum of four passengers at a time. Like the roundabout globe the MOA Eye is festively lit up at night, making it look like a giant parol at Christmastime.
The SM Group has pulled all the stops in making Mall of Asia a true one-stop retail & entertainment haven, all in keeping with an ever-evolving master plan for their vast bayside complex. MOA would presage the bold new direction SM is taking with newer developments such as SM Lanang Premier and SM Aura At The Fort. And with daily foot traffic numbering as high as the hundred-thousands, SM Mall of Asia will continually draw people to this end of EDSA for years to come.
Image courtesy of archuletaphilippines.com
Author Bio:
Dominique Cordero lives in the Philippines and writes for HousingInteractive Inc. You can contact her at dominique@housinginteractive.com or add her to your Google+ circles:+Dominique Cordero.