MANILA, Philippines – The Sy family’s property conglomerate SM Prime will open to the public its 90th mall in the country – SM City Zamboanga – on March 20 at 10 am, with a mall blessing the day before. 

Construction of the mall started in February 2023 and was set to open in late 2025 but got delayed by a few months. Located on Vitaliano Agan Avenue, it will be SM Prime’s second mall in Zamboanga City.

SM Prime bought, renovated, and expanded an old mall, Mindpro Citimall, rebranded it as SM City Mindpro when it opened in 2020 during the pandemic. It was a venture that SM Supermalls president Steven Tan had described as a “very, very successful” mall. 

“So, we’re very bullish with the Zamboanga market, we’re opening a bigger one,” Tan said in a previous interview with the ABS-CBN News Channel.  

SM Prime president Jeffrey Lim had described SM City Mindpro’s opening as “a testament to the flourishing economic activities in Mindanao, boosting the confidence of SM Prime to continue its expansion plans in the region.”

Improved peace and order

The bullishness is partly due to the much improved peace and order situation in the whole of Zamboanga Peninsula, and in what is also known as “Asia’s Latin City,” where a big part of the people speak Chavacano, an indigenous, Spanish-based language. 

Over 12 years ago, Zamboanga City went through one of the most violent episodes in its history when around 500 members of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) took dozens of hostages and laid siege to the city due to government’s alleged failure to abide by the provisions of the 1996 peace agreement with the Fidel Ramos administration. (READ: Zamboanga City: Ground Zero a year after)

Zamboanga City remembers infamous 2013 siege, honors 38 heroes

Government forces fought back in a military operation that lasted three weeks, resulting in more than 200 people killed and over 120,000 displaced. The city would later vow “never again.” (READ: Zamboanga City remembers infamous 2013 siege, honors 38 heroes)

Zamboanga City has since recovered from that conflict and rebuilt the areas affected by the bloody siege.

After the pandemic, the city’s economy  grew 4.9% from 2023 to 2024, led by the services sector, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported in September 2025. 

Zamboanga City’s vibrant economy is rooted in its large population of over 1 million. It is the second largest city in Mindanao, population-wise, next to Davao City, and the sixth most populous in the Philippines. 

Zamboanga City is considered the economic hub of the whole Zamboanga Peninsula, and is also the country’s “Sardines Capital” with over 10 companies engaged in fishing, processing and canning of sardines. 

It also has a large informal economy. Due to its proximity to the Philippines’ southern-most provinces of Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi, the city has a thriving modern barter trade. Many goods, especially food, cigarettes, and textiles, from neighboring countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia are sold in the city, and they’re cheaper than those sold in most formal trading centers. (READ: Filipino Islam will outlast its fanatics)

One indication of Zamboanga City’s prosperity is the fact that it already has several other modern malls. Next to SM City Zamboanga is the KCC de Zamboanga, part of the KCC mall chain in Mindanao. KCC de Zamboanga opened in December 2015, five years earlier than SM City Mindpro with an expansion that followed in 2017. 

Mang Inasal founder Injap Sia’s DoubleDragon opened CityMall in Guiwan, beside the Guiwan Zamboanga Public Market in Zamboanga City in December 2025. It is the second CityMall in Zamboanga City after CityMall Tetuan. There’s also Yubenco Star Mall outside downtown.

A report, A Digital Industries Guide to Invest in Zamboanga City in 2025, said the average yearly income of registered firms in Zamboanga City was around P3.4 million in 2019 or before the pandemic struck. 

Vinta-inspired exterior

SM City Zamboanga’s exterior is inspired by the Vinta, Zamboanga’s traditional multi-colored boat that represents the city’s diverse culture. Around 22% of the city’s population are Muslims. In the whole Zamboanga Peninsula, there are indigenous groups such as the Tausugs (natives of Sulu), Badjaos (sea gypsies), Maranaos, and Samals.

SM Supermalls describes the mall as a “premier lifestyle destination” in Zamboanga City with “modern architecture, indoor plaza, and modern cinemas.” It will have a Sky Plaza on the roof deck for social gatherings, cultural events, and sports activities. 

Among the food outlets that will open in SM City Zamboanga are American fast-food chain KFC, Singaporean restaurant Nanyang, Japanese brand Botejyu, and American coffee chain Starbucks.

One of the unique homegrown brands that will open in the new mall is Astana by Dennis Coffee Garden. 

Dennis Coffee Garden, founded by Imelda Dagus, traces its origins to a small café, Omar’s Place, in the town of Jolo, Sulu. It has been serving native coffee — Kahawa Sug — with native Tausug delicacies such as wadjit (purple glutinous rice cooked in pure coconut milk), biyaki (like a rice cake made from corn), pitis (glutinous rice flour sticky with sweet coconut filling wrapped in banana leaves), pastil (hand pies with togue served with sweet spicy sauce), and satti ayam (grilled chicken strips). It also serves authentic Tausug meals including beef kulma (beef cubes in curry paste), chicken pianggang (chicken marinated in roasted coconut and spices), utak-utak (fried fish cakes), and tiulah sug (beef in broth roasted coconut and spices). 

Dennis Coffee Garden already has four branches in Zamboanga City. It says, however, that Astana by Dennis Coffee Garden will have the “same heritage” but “elevated experience,” and will bring “Sulu’s culinary legacy into a new era of refined dining.” 

Zamboanga City government, now led by Mayor Khymer Olaso, said the new mall will help create jobs and boost the local economy. 

Higher foot traffic despite competition

SM Prime’s recent mall openings have been in areas outside Metro Manila, particularly in what it calls “progressive cities” in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Last year, it opened its 88th mall in Laoag City, Ilocos Norte on May 30, its first supermall in Ilocos Norte. Five months later, it opened mall no. 89, SM City La Union, in the country’s surfing capital in the north. (READ: When the mall meets the sea: How SM City La Union redefines a province)

Last Wednesday, February 24, SM Prime announced that it would open SM Seaside Cebu Arena, “the largest of its kind” multi-purpose indoor arena in Cebu province in June 2026. It will be linked by a SkyBridge to the SMX Convention Center, and can accommodate 25,000 guests for various events such as concerts, sports activities, and corporate events. 

SM Prime has also been redeveloping existing malls such as the SM Mall of Asia (MOA), which now has a football field on top, and a new type of cinema, ScreenX. It is also renovating SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City, particularly its building next to the Asian Development Bank. 

The new malls and redevelopment of existing ones have helped ensure steady foot traffic despite competition from other major mall developers such as the Gokongweis’ Robinsons Land Corporation (RLC), which opened Robinsons Pagadian in April 2025.

SM Prime said on Thursday, February 26, that SM Supermalls 89 malls averaged 115 million visits per month in 2025 or 3.8 million visits per day, an increase of 1% from 2024. 

“Monthly foot traffic peaked at 153 million in December, typically the busiest period for retail centers. During the Christmas month, daily visits averaged 5.5 million on weekends and 4.6 million on weekdays,” the company said. 

It said the 1.4 billion total mall visits for 2025 reflects “steady consumer activity despite challenging economic conditions and weather-related disruptions.” 

Among SM Prime’s next mall openings are SM Sta. Rosa (Yulo), a premium mall in Nuvali, Laguna in 2026, and SM Harrison Plaza in Manila in 2027. – Rappler.com