The competition for Phnom Penh’s shoppers is about to intensify with a brand new $15 million shopping centre. The Young Commercial Center and Resort on National Road 6, near Chroy Changvar in the east of the city, is set to open in mid-September.

Ashley Young, director of the Young Commercial Center and Resort, said the site is “a good location as there is no shopping center in this area and this area is developing fast”.

The new development will have 36,000 square metres of commercial space spread over six floors and 65 per cent of the stalls in the complex have already been rented.

The design of the Young Commercial Centre and Resort aims to grab the attention of anyone passing by. The company director told the Post “we have created something that is different from others” which is specially designed “to attract customers to come to do shopping and enjoy entertainment without being bored”.

The centre has space allocated for shops, selling everything from electronic equipment to clothes, and will also feature a variety of entertainment options with a cinema and karaoke, as well as both restaurants and cafes. The centre will be open from 9am to 9pm, with some of the entertainment venues staying open late.

A water park is also being developed and is slated to open in 2014. All this is part of the company director’s plan to make the shopping centre an “entertainment place for people of all ages” also serving “people of all classes”.

Constructed on more then 3 hectares of land, the shopping centre will have parking for 700 cars and more than 500 motorbikes.

Hang Sopisey, genera manager of Ratana Plaza Shopping Centre, said “currently, the trend of doing shopping at shopping centres in Cambodia is rising because supermarkets are cleaner, more convenient and better than ordinary markets but it’s not a big jump”.

Phnom Penh is already oversupplied with shopping centres, so any new competition will have some effect other centres, she said, adding “before, customers came to our market although their houses are a bit far, but if a new market is opened near their houses, they’ll shop at our market less”.

Despite this, Hang Sopisey believes the effects will be limited because they are so far from each other.

Kuy Vat, director of VTrust Group, said the location makes sense, with more and more development in the area, so ultimately the success or failure will depend on its management and the reaction of the public.