SM City Cebu inlcuding its North wing, Cyberzone, and IMAX Theaters

SM City Cebu logo


SM City Cebu's Northwing facade


SM City Cebu is a large shopping mall in Cebu City, Philippines. It is the 4th largest shopping mall owned and operated by SM Prime Holdings, the country's largest mall operator, and it is the company's first shopping mall outside of Metro Manila. It has a land area of 11.8 hectares and a gross floor area of 268,611 m² (2,891,305 sq. ft.), becoming part of the world's 15 largest shopping malls and making it the 11th largest shopping mall in the world in 2009.

On an average day, more than 100,000 people visit SM City Cebu, with the figure increasing to 140,000 to 150,000 on weekends.[6] Due to Cebu City's position as a transshipment point for the Visayas and Mindanao, and SM City Cebu's location close to the city's port area, the mall attracts a significant number of transient shoppers.

The mall first opened in November 1993, and is seen as catering to the broad middle class of shoppers, in contrast to its upscale competitor Ayala Center Cebu which opened a few months later. An expansion wing particularly targeting upper class customers was added in 2007.

Facts and statistics
Location: Cebu City
Address: North Reclamation Area, Mabolo, Cebu City
Opening date: November 1993
Developer: SM Prime Holdings
Owner: SM Prime Holdings
No. of stores and services: 700+[1]
Total retail floor area: 268,611 m² (2,891,305 sq. ft.)
No. of floors: 4
Website: SM Prime Holdings


The Northwing

Construction on SM City Cebu's expansion building, dubbed the Northwing, began in March 2006.[8] The expansion, which was developed at a cost of P1.3 billion (US$30.5 million), was built on the parking lot to the north of the existing building, temporarily decreasing the number of parking spaces by more than 30%.The Northwing was started in April 2007, and opened in November 2007, featuring spacious hallways catering to the leisure market and upper class customers, while the previously existing mall, redubbed the Southwing, is targeted to those who "love the hustle and bustle".[9] It increased the total gross floor area of SM City Cebu by 107,049 m², for a total of 268,611 m².

Cyberzone

SM Cebu is no longer holding back on giving us the best shopping experience. With their latest addition of the North Wing, shoppers have become more excited and eager to go to one of Cebu’s premier malls. Just recently, SM City Cebu Cyberzone located on the 2nd level of the North Wing was opened to bring all IT enthusiasts all in one place to have a chance to choose a wide variety of the latest gadgets and other IT related stuffs. Cebu is fortunate enough to have the biggest Cyberzone in Mindanao and Visayas.

SM City Cebu Cyberzone

Now you can enjoy a one-stop Information Technology related mainstream and high-end products all in one area of the mall. At around 4,127 square meters, it is more than enough to accommodate a whole lot of IT shops. Here you can stay up to date with technology and its enhancements. From cellular phones to the famous iPods you can find it at the Cyberzone.

SM City Cebu Cyberzone Retailers

SM City Cebu Cyberzone

Shops like Aerophone, AirTouch, Junrex and a lot more will help you get the best deals on Cellular phones. After a great time shopping, have a sip of good coffee at Chaikofi just located at the same floor. Now there’s no reason not to visit SM Cebu.

IMAX THEATERS

SM to open 3D theater in Cebu before yearend

BELIEVING the Cebu market is ready to pay more for digital films, SM Cinemas will open a 500-seater IMAX Theater in SM City Cebu in the fourth quarter of the year.

Digital theater system developer IMAX and SM Cinemas will convert SM’s Cinema 4 into an IMAX theater, equipped with 3D projection technology, laser-aligned digital sound system and a customized way of maximizing a movie-goer’s field of view. When it opens in November or December, it will be the first IMAX Theater outside Metro Manila.

Since they need to choose a good film for the launch, SM Cinema senior vice president Edgar Tejerero said the IMAX-SM partnership are looking Walt Disney’s A Christmas Carol, which is due for release in November, and James Camerons’ Avatar, which Twentieth Century Fox announced will be available in 3D format on Dec. 18.

Tejerero believes movie goers in Cebu will patronize the technology once it is available here.

“The market is very ready,” he told Sun.Star Cebu in an interview at the launch of SM Cinema’s second IMAX Theater in the country at the SM City North Edsa
Wednesday.

An IMAX movie costs from P250 to P400.

SM North Edsa’s IMAX Theater, which has 472 seats, opened with the showing of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” yesterday.

With IMAX’s 2D and 3D conversion technology, 12 minutes of the movie’s opening sequence is in 3D, SM Cinema’s press release said.

“IMAX is able to create a 3D experience like no other,” said Don Savant, senior vice president and managing director of IMAX Corp., during the launch.

IMAX plans to produce more titles next year, including Alice in Wonderland, Shrek Goes Fourth and Inception from director Chris Nolan of the Dark Knight.

Despite the ticket price, the company’s first IMAX Theater at the SM City Mall of Asia (MOA), which opened in 2006, “is earning well” and has an occupancy rate of about
70 percent, Tejerero said.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen even enjoyed a 96 percent to 100 percent occupancy rate, he added.

MOA’s IMAX Theater features 10 Hollywood films and five educational films or documentaries a year.

Regular theaters, Teje-rero said, only have an average occupancy rate of less than 20 percent.

“Sixty percent of those who watch in regular theaters watch it again in IMAX,” he told reporters in an interview.

An IMAX Theater has a screen with a height of 14 to 24 meters. Regular cinemas only have about eight to 10 meters.

Despite the financial crisis, Tejerero said SM cinemas enjoyed a three to four percent increase in movie goers in the first half of the year compared to figures in 2008.

SM cinemas’ nationwide gross sales from tickets sold in its 206 theaters, which seats 127,000, reached P2.5 billion last year.

Although its investments in an IMAX Theater is seven times more that of a regular one, Tejerero said the company abides by the vision of SM founder Henry Sy Sr., which is to expand the conglomerate’s reach in the country and to bring to the Filipinos the latest technology.

The next IMAX Theater will open in Taguig, with the opening of a new mall there.

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