SM Prime Holdings, Inc. on Friday opened SM City BF Parañaque, the firm’s 48th shopping center in the Philippines, the Sy-led company said in a statement.

The mall, which has a gross floor area of 120,200 square meters, will be the first SM shopping center to have four “Director’s Club” cinemas equipped with electronic recliner seats that can accommodate up to 200 moviegoers, the company claimed.

“We are pleased to open SM City BF in the highly progressive city of Parañaque and this reflects our continuing efforts to better serve the various needs of the city with a more upscale offering,” SM Prime President Hans T. Sy was quoted in the statement as saying.

“Always wanting to give a unique mall experience, we have equipped SM City BF with the most number of premier digital cinemas and director’s clubs in a single mall,” he added. “We are also introducing new facilities and more international brands to heighten our customers’ shopping and dining experience.”

SM City BF’s casual dining establishments include Vikings, Guernicas, My Little Buttercup, Thousand Cranes, Toho, Kimono Ken, Cafe Mary Grace, Zabo Chicken, Cafe Benne, 12 Cupcakes, among others.

Fashion brands include Mango, Uniqlo, Giordano, and Plains & Prints. Anchor tenants are The SM Store, SM Supermarket, Our Home, SM Appliance Center, Ace Hardware and Watson’s.

The mall provides parking space for 1,419 cars and 179 slots for motorcycles on the 4th, 5th and 6th levels.

Aside from the Philippines, SM Prime also has five malls in China located in Xiamen, Jinjiang, Chengdu, Suzhou, and Chongqing.

SM Prime recorded a net income of P8.73 billion in the nine months ending September, up by 13.38% from P7.70 billion in the same period last year. Revenues jumped 12.08% to P24.77 billion from P22.10 billion while cost and expenses rose 12.06% to P11.71 billion from P10.45 billion.

Its shares rose 38 centavos or 2.37% to close P16.40 apiece on Friday from P16.02 each on Thursday. — C. H. C. Venzon