Davao City’s homegrown pioneering retail establishment New City Commercial Corporation (NCCC) announced on Tuesday its acquisition of the iconic Victoria Plaza, the first ever shopping mall complex in Davao Region.
The acquisition cost was not disclosed publicly but an insider who spoke of condition of anonymity said the cost will be announced during a press conference on March 27.
The landmark deal was consummated in a signing ceremony held on March 12, 2019 at the PNB Financial Center in Manila between NCCC Chairman Helen A. Lim, and Malls President Sharlene Faye A. Lim and officials from the Lucio Tan-owned Philippine National Bank (PNB)
“This is a historic and strategic acquisition for NCCC. As a local, we are very confident in the city’s participation in our country’s growing economy,” Chairman Helen Lim said in a statement released to media.
“It is a privilege for a homegrown company like ours to have the opportunity to develop this property that is very much a part of Davao’s culture. We will strive to preserve this history while rewriting it to respond to the future,” said NCCC Malls President Sharlene Faye Lim.
NCCC will formally take over ownership of Victoria Plaza on March 27, 2019.
Victoria Plaza Mall was built in the early 1990’s and is the first of its kind mall complex in Davao City. It is located along J. P. Laurel Avenue, Bajada, Davao City, the mall has a gross land area of 81,000 sqm. The two-story mall has a supermarket, a department store, a hardware store, and six cinemas. Before the emergence of new malls in the city, Victoria Plaza was considered as the ‘mecca’ of shopping.
In July last year, NCCC, by way of its affiliate LTS Mall Inc. opened the third branch of the New City Commercial Corp. (NCCC) Mall at Tigatto-Mandug Road in Buhangin less than a year after its biggest branch in Ma-a caught fire. A total of 33 people died in the fire that hit the NCCC Mall on December 23, 2017. LTS Pinnacle Holdings Inc., Mother Company of the NCCC Group, plans to rebuild the mall but has not given any timeline for the construction.
