Plaza Singapura
Encyclopedia
Plaza Singapura is a contemporary shopping mall
located along Orchard Road
, Singapore
. The mall is managed by CapitaLand
and owned by CapitaMall Trust. There are retail outlets over seven floors and two basements. The mall has a 752 lot seven storey carpark at the rear of the building, and a two basement goods bay beneath it. Anchor tenants include Carrefour
, Golden Village
, John Little
, Marks & Spencer
, Best Denki
, Spotlight and Yamaha
. The mall is popular with families, teenagers and young adults, the average number of people visiting is:3945 per day.
department store
and supermarket
, which was opened on 14 September 1974, a Yamaha store and a Yaohan Best (now Best Denki
) as its major tenants.
The mall was then managed by DBS Land which is the predecessor of CapitaLand
. There were three internal courtyard
s and an external forecourt
provided psychological relief from the noise of traffic and commercial activity outside. Plaza Singapura was officially opened by then Minister for Finance, Mr Hon Sui Sen
, on 16 August 1975.
Ng Eng Teng
, which has now been removed.
The mall did not go under any major renovations until 1997 during the Asian Financial Crisis, when it went under major retrofitting with a totally new look and the mall totally changed when it reopened in 1998. As Yaohan went bankrupt in 1997, it saw the departure of the main store. The mall's tenants changed drastically, and NTUC Fairprice
American
style supermarket
, Liberty Market took over Yaohan in Basement 2. Daimaru
occupied the whole of the fourth floor and a 53000 sq ft (4,923.9 m²). A Courts
superstore occupied the floors 1, 2 and 3.
This was to change when between 2002 and 2003, when the mall once again when under a revamp with a new tenant mix. The mall had renovations in the basements, and a direct link to Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station
was constructed. Travellators
were also installed in the building for the convenience of shoppers. The mall has repositioned itself into a one stop family mall and a popular place for many Singaporeans.
In 2008, further changes were made to Plaza Singapura. Level 7 of the mall was given a face lift and tenants selling toys, gifts and hobby related items such as swords and cosplay costumes were introduced.
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...
located along Orchard Road
Orchard Road
Orchard Road is a road in Singapore that is the retail and entertainment hub of the city-state. It is regularly frequented by the local population as well as being a major tourist attraction...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. The mall is managed by CapitaLand
CapitaLand
CapitaLand Limited is the result of a merger in the year 2000 of then DBS Land and Pidemco Land. It is one of Asia's largest real estate companies. Headquartered and listed in Singapore, the company's core businesses are real estate development, hospitality and real estate financial services...
and owned by CapitaMall Trust. There are retail outlets over seven floors and two basements. The mall has a 752 lot seven storey carpark at the rear of the building, and a two basement goods bay beneath it. Anchor tenants include Carrefour
Carrefour
Carrefour S.A. is an international hypermarket chain headquartered in Levallois-Perret, France. It is one of the largest hypermarket chains in the world...
, Golden Village
Golden Village
Golden Village is a cinema operator based in Singapore which is a joint venture by Golden Harvest of Hong Kong and Village Roadshow of Australia. It operates nine multiplexes and cineplexes in the country including a largest cineplex at VivoCity. It joined hands to open a cinema at Great World...
, John Little
John Little (department store)
John Little is a chain of department stores in Singapore. Established in 1845, John Little is the oldest department store in Singapore. The John Little chain is owned by Robinson & Co. Limited....
, Marks & Spencer
Marks & Spencer
Marks and Spencer plc is a British retailer headquartered in the City of Westminster, London, with over 700 stores in the United Kingdom and over 300 stores spread across more than 40 countries. It specialises in the selling of clothing and luxury food products...
, Best Denki
Best Denki
is a Japanese electronics retailer with outlets across Japan, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Kuwait. Best Denki headquarters is located in Fukuoka. Previously, in Singapore, it was known as "Yaohan Best", when it started operations there in 1985. After Yaohan's bankruptcy,...
, Spotlight and Yamaha
Yamaha (manufacturer)
is a multinational corporation and conglomerate based in Japan with a wide range of products and services, predominantly musical instruments, electronics, motorcycles and power sports equipment.-History:...
. The mall is popular with families, teenagers and young adults, the average number of people visiting is:3945 per day.
History
Plaza Singapura was completed in 1974 and was designed by BEP Akitek Pte Ltd. At the time of completion, it was one of the largest malls in the island. The mall included a YaohanYaohan
Yaohan was a Japanese retail group. The company was founded in 1930 by Kazuo Wada . Initially a single shop, it later expanded into a major supermarket chain after the Second World War with most retail outlets located in Shizuoka prefecture, south of Tokyo. It was listed on Tokyo Stock Exchange...
department store
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...
and supermarket
Supermarket
A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
, which was opened on 14 September 1974, a Yamaha store and a Yaohan Best (now Best Denki
Best Denki
is a Japanese electronics retailer with outlets across Japan, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Kuwait. Best Denki headquarters is located in Fukuoka. Previously, in Singapore, it was known as "Yaohan Best", when it started operations there in 1985. After Yaohan's bankruptcy,...
) as its major tenants.
The mall was then managed by DBS Land which is the predecessor of CapitaLand
CapitaLand
CapitaLand Limited is the result of a merger in the year 2000 of then DBS Land and Pidemco Land. It is one of Asia's largest real estate companies. Headquartered and listed in Singapore, the company's core businesses are real estate development, hospitality and real estate financial services...
. There were three internal courtyard
Courtyard
A court or courtyard is an enclosed area, often a space enclosed by a building that is open to the sky. These areas in inns and public buildings were often the primary meeting places for some purposes, leading to the other meanings of court....
s and an external forecourt
Forecourt
In architecture a forecourt is an open area in front of a structure's entrance.In archaeology, forecourt is the name given to the area in front of certain types of chamber tomb...
provided psychological relief from the noise of traffic and commercial activity outside. Plaza Singapura was officially opened by then Minister for Finance, Mr Hon Sui Sen
Hon Sui Sen
Hon Sui Sen was born in Penang in the British Straits Settlements.-Early life:A Hakka, he was educated at Saint Xavier's Institution. Hon was top-placed in the 1932 Senior Cambridge Certificate Examination...
, on 16 August 1975.
Architecture
It was then described by students that the building appears "lumpy" in the context and the glass fibre decorated mural at the front and two sides is quite insensitive, like some great Nonya belt. It used to house two sculptures in the building which was designed by the late renowned sculptorSculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
Ng Eng Teng
Ng Eng Teng
Ng Eng Teng , The Grandfather of Singapore Sculpture was a sculptor in Singapore known for his figurative sculptures, many of which are found in public locations around Singapore...
, which has now been removed.
The mall did not go under any major renovations until 1997 during the Asian Financial Crisis, when it went under major retrofitting with a totally new look and the mall totally changed when it reopened in 1998. As Yaohan went bankrupt in 1997, it saw the departure of the main store. The mall's tenants changed drastically, and NTUC Fairprice
NTUC FairPrice
NTUC FairPrice Co-Operative is a supermarket chain based in Singapore and the largest in the country. The company is a co-operative of the National Trades Union Congress or NTUC. The group has 100 supermarkets across the island, with over 50 outlets of Cheers convenience stores island-wide...
American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
style supermarket
Supermarket
A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
, Liberty Market took over Yaohan in Basement 2. Daimaru
Daimaru
is a Japanese department stores chain, principally located in the Kansai region of Japan. The chain is operated by Daimaru Matsuzakaya Department Stores, a subsidiary of J. Front Retailing...
occupied the whole of the fourth floor and a 53000 sq ft (4,923.9 m²). A Courts
Courts Plc
Courts is a retailer of furniture and electronic goods with stores in the Caribbean and Asia. It was originally founded in 1850 in the United Kingdom. It was known for an advertising campaign in the 1980s and 1990s that featured Bruce Forsyth dressed as a judge . After this it advertised with a...
superstore occupied the floors 1, 2 and 3.
This was to change when between 2002 and 2003, when the mall once again when under a revamp with a new tenant mix. The mall had renovations in the basements, and a direct link to Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station
Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station
Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station ' is a Mass Rapid Transit station in Singapore, located at the eastern end of Orchard Road. Originally it was only a station on the North South Line but after the opening of the North East Line on 20 June 2003, it became the interchange station for these two lines...
was constructed. Travellators
Escalator
An escalator is a moving staircase – a conveyor transport device for carrying people between floors of a building. The device consists of a motor-driven chain of individual, linked steps that move up or down on tracks, allowing the step treads to remain horizontal.Escalators are used around the...
were also installed in the building for the convenience of shoppers. The mall has repositioned itself into a one stop family mall and a popular place for many Singaporeans.
In 2008, further changes were made to Plaza Singapura. Level 7 of the mall was given a face lift and tenants selling toys, gifts and hobby related items such as swords and cosplay costumes were introduced.