Hang Lung to spend HK$40 million on mall upgrades to woo Mong Kok’s shoppers

Hang Lung Properties will spend HK$40 million (US$5.1 million) renovating two of its shopping malls in Hong Kong’s bustling Mong Kok area in a bid to enhance rental income in a fast-changing retail landscape.

Bella Chhoa, director of leasing and management at Hang Lung Properties, said the improvements will be carried out over the next two years and will include refurbishment of the facades, lift lobbies and car park exit.

It is the latest in a series of “asset enhancements” the retail landlord launched in 2012. It has completed the renovation of Fashion Walk in Causeway Bay and Grand Plaza in Mong Kok, while improvements are under way at The Peak Galleria mall and Shanghai’s Grand Gateway 66.

The upgrades come in tandem with a gradual restructuring of the trade mix aimed at attracting more young, trendy shoppers, such as those who visit fast-fashion chain H&M at Gala Place.

As part of that effort, the landlord has been insisting its tenants include interactive elements when they negotiate their rental contracts.

“For instance, Kiehl’s, which opened in Hollywood Plaza in December last year, lets shoppers interact by designing bags,” said Chhoa.

She said the investment at Grand Plaza had yielded an occupancy rate of “nearly 100 per cent”, higher rents and a roughly 10 per cent rise in footfall during Lunar New Year.