THREE cities in Negros Occidental, Kabankalan, Victorias and San Carlos, are the new homes for CityMalls in the province.
CityMall Commercial Centers Inc. is a subsidiary of Double Dragon Properties Corp.
The opening was led by Ferdinand Sia, president of Double Dragon Properties, Herson Sy, grandson of SM founder Henry Sy who represented his father Herbert Sy, vice chairman of SM Markets, Food and Retail Group, Victorias City Mayor Francis Frederick Palanca, Eugene Saw, head of SM Shoes and Bags, and Rocky Gomez, assistant vice president-regional manager for Shoes and Bags.
Kabankalan opened shop on February 14, followed by Victorias on February 15, and in San Carlos today, February 16.
Along with these openings are the opening too of Simply Shoes in Victorias and in Kabankalan.
Mayor Palanca welcomed the first mall that opened in their city in time with his 57th birthday on Wednesday.
"We are happy they have chosen Victorias, making our city a destination in the province, with the airport at the back and soon to be a port in front, we are nearer to Iloilo than any other area, nearer to Passi, Boracay, Manila. We hope our people will enjoy. This means that investments are coming to Victorias City. We thank God for this," the mayor said.
Palanca added with the construction of the airport road, Victorias will just be 10 minutes away from the Bacolod-Silay airport.
"We are glad that City Mall is here. We thank them for their confidence in Victorias. We are so happy and we will make our investors happy. We have a 70-30 program for labor wherein 70 percent of the work force are residents of Victorias City," he said.
Elizabeth Nathalia Tinio, assistant vice president of Simply Shoes, said their store also opened in Kabankalan and in Victorias.
"We are very happy to open our 22nd store in the Philippines, and the third in Negros Occidental. We just two years ago and we have expanded to 22 stores. We are opening one before the year ends. We are happy that the people appreciate and patronize our products," she said.
Simply Shoes carries the brands of SM.
"Our thrust is to bring shoes to the Filipino community where SM is not present. We have shoes for everyone from infants, kids, parents and grandparents parents; bags, accessories, luggage, among others," Tinio said.
"We have interesting products which are affordable to everyone," she added.