This website uses cookies to improve your experience. Filmmaker Sam Green made a short film about the South China Mall called Utopia Part 3: the World's Largest Shopping Mall which premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival and was broadcast on PBS's documentary series POV. [10][11] The 2007 makeover was orchestrated by Founder Group, which took over the property from the original owner Hu Guirong in December 2006. Historically, the South China tiger inhabited a vast region of this country of almost 1,250 miles from East to West and 950 miles from north to south. It retained its crown as the largest mall in the world until the Dubai Mall overtook it in terms of area size. The general public must also find the mall itself simple to navigate. [2][6], The mall was owned by Dongguan Sanyuan Yinghui Investment & Development (东莞市三元盈晖投资发展有限公司),[7] Hu Guirong's company, but a controlling interest in the mall was later sold to Founder Group, a division of Peking University.[2]. South China Mall (Chinese: 华南Mall; pinyin: Huá nán) in Dongguan, China (formerly New South China Mall) is the second largest shopping mall in the world when measured in terms of gross leasable area, and second in terms of total area to The Dubai Mall (which has extensive non-shopping space including a zoo, a hotel complex and a theme park). Enjoyed this article? (Remko Tanis / Flickr). Built on what was formerly agricultural land in Wanjiang district in Dongguan in Guangdong province, the South China Mall is situated some 55 kilometres away from the city centre in an out of the way location that is not easy to reach. A noteworthy observation about the shopping malls in Asia is that they are enormous in size. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. (Remko Tanis / Flickr). It became apparent that the mall was a losing proposition and the Western media began to deride the place as a colossal failure. The mall entered the world pre-ruined, as if its developers had deliberately created an attraction for people with a taste for abandonment and decay. Or Both?“. Regarding the matter of shoppers visiting from Shenzhen or Guangzhou, that was an unrealistic expectation. These cookies do not store any personal information. (Remko Tanis / Flickr). People should be able to move about easily through its various sections without feeling trapped or lost. [3] Much of the retail space remained empty, with over 99% of the stores still vacant in 2008. [7], Coordinates: 23°2′15″N 113°43′14″E / 23.03750°N 113.72056°E / 23.03750; 113.72056, List of the world's largest shopping malls, "Chinese 'ghost mall' back from the dead? According to this study, the prospective mall was likely to attract over 200,000 customers per day, and more than a few of these would be shoppers from nearby Guangzhou and Shenzhen. Over the next ten years, the stores that had leased space in the mall closed or went out of business, and over 99% of the mall space remained empty. [1], South China Mall opened in 2005 and for more than 10 years it was mostly vacant as few merchants ever signed up, leading it to be dubbed a dead mall. The South China Mall -- a jumble of Disneyland and Las Vegas, a shoppers' version of paradise and hell all wrapped in one -- will be nearly three times the size of the massive Mall … The study appears to have been based more on wishful thinking than on practical realities. Another aspect that the mall developers overlooked is that the Chinese are, in general, savers not spenders. 4.67 reviews(3) Sexy Sleeveless Spaghetti V-neck Split Front … South China Mall (Chinese: 华南Mall; pinyin: Huá nán) in Dongguan, China (formerly New South China Mall) is the largest shopping mall in the world when measured in terms of gross leasable area, and second in terms of total area to The Dubai Mall (which has extensive non-shopping space including a zoo, a hotel complex and a theme park). While Mr. Hu certainly appears to have had laudable intentions, neither he nor his team seem to have given much thought to various practical aspects regarding the project’s feasibility. The empty Teletubbies Amusement Park at the mall. If you find the above article inaccurate or biased, please let us know at [email protected]. Economic Ingenuity? What sets the South China Mall apart from the rest, besides its mind-numbing size, is that it never went into decline. Once they had made their approval clear, the bank did not bother further about the project’s economic viability. The New South China Mall, situated in Dongguan City, is considered to be the largest shopping mall in the world. Originally called "South China Mall", the centre was redubbed as "New South China Mall, Living City" in September 2007. Unfortunately, unlike the Dubai Mall and the Mall of America, the South China Mall has not so far enjoyed the widespread success its developers expected. The mall was his maiden venture. [12], In 2013, Vagabond Journey writer Wade Shepard wrote about his recent visit to the mall. However, things can go wrong. The available staff is, apparently, unable to keep up the complex maintenance, and much of the infrastructure is deteriorating and crumbling. They sent out design experts to malls around the world to review and gather the best building ideas. [2][8] The only occupied areas were near the entrance where several Western fast food chains are located and a parking structure re-purposed as a kart racing track. That they would prefer to shop at the new mall in another city, rather than at the many malls closer to their homes. The now abandoned South China Mall. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Despite having pre-leasing agreements with around 1016 stores, the mall opened with only 386 stores. The cost of its construction is estimated around $1.3 billion. The much-publicized crowd of 200,000 plus people per day never materialized. As China makes its way towards becoming an economic power to reckon with, it is inevitable that it will encounter a few hiccups along the way. Fact Analysis: STSTW Media strives to deliver accurate information through careful research. He acknowledged that most visitors attend the mall for its movie theaters featuring IMAX, and that families did gather in the play area. 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