SHOPPERS in Nueva Ecija had more shopping, leisure and entertainment excitement to look forward to when SM City Cabanatuan recently opened its doors to the public.
 
The moment SM Prime Holdings President Hans T. Sy welcomed the first wave of customers in the SM tradition-crowds quickly packed the mall to shop, eat out and watch movies.
 
SM City Cabanatuan is SM Prime’s 53rd supermall, and the second in Nueva Ecija after SM Megacenter Cabanatuan opened in April this year. Located on a 4-hectare site in Barangay H. Concepcion along Maharlika Highway, the 153,756-squaremeter five-level mall will serve shoppers in Cabanatuan and nearby towns in Nueva Ecija, the largest province of Central Luzon, which is one of the top producers of agricultural products in the country. Cabanatuan City is the economic heart of Nueva Ecija. It is fast becoming a major investment hub and considered one of the most competitive cities for doing business in
the country.
 
Big-time investors in banking, real estate, retail and other industrial enterprises are drawn to the city because of its adequate infrastructure and support facilities. The SM Store and SM Supermarket are the mall’s major retail anchors, leading the way with SM mainstays, like the SM Appliance Center, ACE Hardware, Watsons, Surplus and the Body Shop. There’s more shopping fun ahead as global brands Philip Stein, Guess, Guess Kids, The Face Shop, Melissa and Ed Hardy open together with well-loved local brand Human within the year. Iconic global brands Uniqlo and Terranova are scheduled to open in 2016. With Cabanatuan emerging as Central Luzon’s information-technology hub, the mall’s Cyberzone will be an attraction with major players, Smart, Globe, Huawei, as well as computer stores like Octagon, Asus, Game Gizmo, Digibabe, PC Square, Excellence and Datablitz. Dining at the mall will be an exciting experience with its two Sky Gardens as a backdrop, as well as its eating out options. 
 
These include international chains, like Starbucks, Kenny Rogers, BonChon, Burger King, Krispy Kreme, Mr. Donut, and Gong Cha; as well as well-loved Filipino favorites, like Jollibee, Chowking, Greenwich, Pancake House and Classic Savory. Home grown restaurants, like Edna’s Cakeland and Hapag Vicentecos as well as Desserts Chalet and Leticia Breads and Cakes will also delight mallgoers. 
 
SM City Cabanatuan will definitely be a dining destination as more restaurants, like McDonald’s, Red Ribbon, Mang Inasal, Pizza Hut, Dairy Queen, Shakey’s, French Baker, Gerry’s Grill, Max’s, Giligan’s, Kuya J and Razon’s of Guagua open with the next few months. The mall will also have six digital cinemas, including a large screen cinema that can accommodate 507 guests in a stadium much like that of the IMAX theater. Amusement areas, like Kidzoona and Sports Zone; and wellness outlets, like Laybare and Body Tune Spa complete the malling experience. For customer convenience, the mall will have 2,058 parking slots and 476 motorcycle parking slots.
 
SM City Cabanatuan’s design team includes DSGN Associates, mall designer; Jose Siao Ling and Associates, architect on record and New Golden Construction Builders, general contractor.