Property Hunter Magazine October Issue 2014 | Page 52
/// Feature Property Event
Ericca Ernatasherra Binti Jimmy, Marketing & Admin Executive, (Mega Emart (Bintulu) Sdn Bhd) left with Chan Kheng Seng, Property Executive
Going Local is Big Business
Despite having big flashy multi-storey shopping
malls, shoppers still have a soft spot for
homespun local stores.
Ericca Ernatasherra, who was at the SHEDA
Property Expo in Kuching recently, said that the
project in Bintulu will be their biggest one yet.
Emart opened its first store in Miri in 2005
offering a range of products targeting shoppers
in the lower and medium income groups. Its
concept is typical of any shopping mall with a
supermarket, food and beverage outlets, and
food court but its addition of a wet market (fresh
market) helped cement its reputation as a store
with local flavour. Its weekend specials is a big
hit with shoppers as evidenced by the regular
discount updates and feedback on their facebook
page.
“The focal point of the project will be the
emart Mall but there will also be shoplots and
apartments as well,” she explains.
Customer loyalty has seen emart grow from
strength to strength with the opening of its
Kuching outlet at Batu Kawa this year and another
one in Bintulu scheduled for completion in 2018.
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The project area spans 28 acres and includes 166
units of 3-storey and 5-storey shoplots. It has yet
to be decided if the apartments will be put up for
sale to the public or reserved for shoplot tenants
and emart staff.
The selling price for our shoptlots starts from
RM1.8 million upwards with the 5-storey shoplots
coming equipped with an elevator bank. And we
have sold out almost 80% of the saleable units.”
Since the opening of its first store, emart
has upgraded its project concept to provide
better service to its loyal customers and to
attract a more diverse clientele. The Batu Kawa
supermarket is considered the second-generation
emart where its fully air-conditioned, is more
spacious and the wet market is moved outside to
make it more pleasant for shoppers.
“Bintulu is not large but it is expanding. The
expatriate workforce here is significant which
has pushed up the price of properties here,” says
Ericca.
Despite this, the demand for residential and
commercial properties in Bintulu is still high.
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