Robinsons Land unveils renovation plan for major malls

Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC) is preparing a major renovation plan for several of its key shopping centers across the Philippines as part of its “premiumization strategy.”

RLC president and chief executive Mybelle Aragon-Gobio said the full details of the mall redevelopment plan would be disclosed before the end of the year. The renovations will involve some of the group’s major malls both within and outside Metro Manila.

While the exact number of malls and the resulting increase in leasable area have not yet been finalized, the move follows similar mall upgrades by rivals SM Prime Holdings and Ayala Land Inc.

RL Commercial REIT (RCR) president and chief executive Jericho Go also indicated that shopping malls remain a likely asset for the real estate investment trust’s next acquisition from parent firm RLC.

“We still have a huge amount of mall space that is available, and at present time mall has shown a lot of promise when it comes to dividend accretiveness,” Go said.

He said that while the group’s hotel business has recovered from the pandemic, malls are very stable and provide an upside to rental revenues.

RCR recently completed the acquisition of nine malls from RLC valued at P30.67 billion. This follows a 2024 acquisition of 11 malls and two office buildings worth P33.9 billion.

Go said the company is now eyeing its next set of acquisitions, which could take place next year.

He said future acquisitions could also involve other assets such as hotels and industrial warehouses. RLC holds nearly 300,000 square meters of logistics gross leasable area (GLA) and about 4,000 hotel room keys that could potentially be infused into RCR.

RLC was operating 56 malls nationwide, which included nine in Metro Manila and 47 in other areas, as of end-June 2025.

The total gross leasable area stood at 1.7 million square meters, enjoying a 94-percent occupancy rate.