Japanese retailer Aeon opened its largest shopping centre in China this week, representing the company’s entry into the Shanghai region.
The Suzhou centre is one of the largest shopping centres in China at 75,000m2, with a supermarket, cinema complex and 190 retail shops, located in the Suzhou Wuzhong Economic Development Zone.
Aeon estimates a customer flow of 10m annually, according to Inside Retail Asia, and plans to open 15 new shopping centres in China over the next three years as part of its ¥400bn (US$3.9bn) investment in developing its presence in Asia.
The opening comes after Aeon opened its first store in Vietnam in January, and announced its plans to open news stores, including Daiso, in Malaysia. Aeon will also open a shopping centre in Cambodia in June and plans to open stores in Indonesia by the end of the year.
Aeon operates 138 shopping centres across Japan, China and Vietnam and reported a record US$62.3bn in revenue last financial year.
