BERJAYA Times Square Sdn Bhd, operator of the RM1.8bil Berjaya Times Square in Kuala Lumpur, is targeting a tenancy rate of 80% for the mall, which will open for business in October.

Berjaya Group Bhd chairman Tan Sri Vincent Tan said the target was achievable and that the mall would perform better than expected.

''At this juncture, we feel we can do better when we open in October,'' he said.

He said with the tenancy rate now at 60%, the company would be able to surpass its target of 70% on the opening of the mall and hence had revised upward the target to 80%.

''By October, it could be a surprise - (tenancy rate) maybe 90%, who knows,'' he said after the handing over of Berjaya Times Square by the contractor Invescor-Dumez Jaya-Woh Hup JV. The ceremony was witnessed by Works Minister Datuk Seri Samy Vellu.

The 46-storey Berjaya Times Square, which was built on a 12.7-acre site, houses eight development components - including shops, offices and apartments - boasting a total floor area of 7.5 million sq ft.

With its shopping complex offering a total of 2.1 million sq ft of shopping space, the mall will be the largest shopping and leisure complex in this region. It is also claimed to be the largest project ever undertaken in a single phase, anywhere in the world.

Tan, who owns 80% stake in the project, said he had personally pumped in RM400mil into the project, which started in 1994.

''Moving forward, we will spend (an amount) enough to make this project a success,'' he said on the advertising and promotional budget for the shopping complex.

Berjaya Times Square is projected to attract three million patrons a month, with most visitors expected for its indoor theme park , touted as the largest of its kind in Asia. It also houses Malaysia’s first IMAX 3-D and 2-D movies theatre, 900 specialty retail stores and 65 restaurants and cafes.

The theme park operator is currently the anchor tenant, Tan said.

Samy Vellu said he did not expect any development matching the magnitude of Berjaya Times Square in the next 10 years.

He said the government had been monitoring such projects as it had been receiving complaints of low patronage at shopping complexes.

Source: The Star