Ratu Plaza to reopen again after five years
Ratu Plaza to reopen again after five years
JAKARTA (JP): Ratu Plaza shopping center, a popular mall in
the 1980s, is back in business again after being empty for some
five years.
In the past few weeks carpenters and interior shop designers
have been working busily on newly rented shops in the 20-year-old
building.
Linawati Djohan, marketing manager of PT Ratu Sayang
International, which owns and manages the shopping center, said
the grand opening of the "new" Ratu Plaza has been set for the
middle of next month.
"The current occupancy rate is already 90 percent," Linawati
told The Jakarta Post on Monday.
Business actually began in July following the soft opening.
According to Linawati, the location of the four-story Ratu
Plaza in one of the city's thriving business locales on Jl.
Sudirman "offers a convenient destination for shoppers in South
Jakarta."
Under the new layout, visitors will find fashion outlets and
beauty saloons at ground level and on the first floor.
Furniture stores dominate the second floor and computer shops
are located on the top floor.
In the 1980s, Ratu Plaza was very popular among discriminating
shoppers as the prestigious mall was one of a few "modern"
shopping centers with "super expensive" merchandise.
"You could see many noted figures, from top actresses to
ministers, shopping at the plaza at the time," one patron
recalled.
Its popularity began to fade about 1995 due to the mushrooming
number of competitors.
An engineering consultant, T. Meliala, stopped by to find out
if the mall had been reopened.
"This place was very famous in the 80s," Meliala recalled,
adding that it had been a popular place for people to hang out,
particularly young ones.
"There used to be a food mart in the basement that sold
delicious food. I used to go there a lot," Meliala said.
In its heyday, Ratu Plaza was home to exclusive shops selling
brand-name fashion items, jewelry, electronic goods, furniture,
and hobby crafts.
During the mid 1990s, Ratu Plaza started to lose its tenants,
one by one, including Matahari department store, Benetton fashion
house and Gunung Agung bookstore.
Unfavorable
According to retail expert, Suryadharma Ali, the unfavorable
situation faced by the tenants in 1995 was mainly due to the
failure of the shopping center's management in anticipating the
rapid growth of similar businesses.
But Linawati said, "the plaza is now ready to compete with
other shopping complexes in the city."
Interviewed by the Post recently, several tenants of the new
Ratu Plaza disclosed that business was still slow since the soft
opening some two months ago.
Liana, manager of the Bear House toy store, which opened July
28, said sales so far had been relatively low compared to her
outlets at Ciputra and Taman Anggrek shopping malls in West
Jakarta.
"We rented this space because there was no vacancy at any
other shopping malls and we think it is unlikely for a new mall
to be built in Jakarta in the near future," she said.
Her comment was echoed by manager of CBM Computer and Notebook
Center, Herry Sukanto.
"Our outlet at Gajah Mada Plaza has more customers," Herry
said, referring to a shopping center in Kota area that also
suffered depressed business activity a few years ago.
Several tenants have questioned the motive of the building's
owner to isolate the mall's primary tenant, Carrefour, already
busy with customers, from their shops.
According to them, the separation denies Carrefour customers
access to their shops.
Some tenants believe their sales will improve after the
September grand opening.
"We offer prices almost the same as our rivals in Glodok and
Mangga Dua. So, we're here to serve customers who refuse to deal
with macet (traffic jam) and the crowds of people at those two
areas," a proprietor of a computer shop said. (jaw/bsr)