Developers from around the region including Thailand are looking at Myanmar as the next hot spot for commercial spending. According to Nikkei Asian Review, several large retail complexes are being built by foreign property developers in Yangon as companies expect to see a surge in consumer spending in the country over the next decade.
Thailand’s Fragrant Property is one of the developers getting into the mix. The company announced plans to build a large commercial complex in Yangon that will cost THB10 billion to construct, Nikkei Asian Review reported. The development will be known as the Nawaday Complex and Fragrant Property has already purchased the land for the project. The plans call for there to be a hotel, an office building and a shopping center at the site. Construction is slated to start in 2016 and be finished sometime in 2020.
Nikkei Asian Review also stated that Vietnamese real estate developer Hoang Anh Gia Lai is planning on entering the market. The developer is set to partially open a huge commercial complex before the end of the year. The project will feature the largest shopping mall in Myanmar once opened.
The HAGL Myanmar Center cost USD440 million to build and is located in Yankin, Yangon’s leading shopping and entertainment district. Construction on the development began in the summer of 2013 and should be completed within the next two years. There will be luxury condominiums built nearby the complex as well. The developer told Nikkei Asian Review that 70 percent of the pre-sale units available have already been sold.
For decades, Myanmar has been one of the poorest ASEAN countries; however, with a new democracy in place and economic measures set to take effect, middle-class consumers with spending power have started to populate the country. The country’s market for upscale goods including automobiles and household appliances is also growing with several key brands including Ford, Jaguar and Land Rover having already entered the market.
