Building Investment (May - June 2022)

NEWS & EVENTS
Artist impression of Klippa.
Ikano Centres Unveils ‘Klippa’ As Official Name for
its Batu Kawan Mixed-Use Development in Penang
Ikano Centres today officially unveils ‘Klippa’ as the name of its
retail destination and mixed-use development, which aims to be
the cultural heart and hub for the growing Batu Kawan township.
Ikano Centres is part of Ikano Retail, which owns IKEA stores in
five countries as well as shopping centres that are anchored by
IKEA. This is Ikano Centres’ first northern region presence.
Conveniently located with direct access to the Second Penang
Bridge and seamless connection to IKEA, Klippa will offer a unique
retail experience with an integrated shopping centre spanning
1.6 million sq ft of Gross Leasable Area (GLA) and housing over
300 brands. Ikano Centres is also exploring additional commercial
and residential opportunities to add to its meeting place, which
will be developed in a phased approach to meet Batu Kawan’s
growing community of students, families, and professionals at the
neighbouring Batu Kawan Industrial Park (BKIP).
The first phase of Klippa was launched in December 2019
complementing a great day out at IKEA Batu Kawan with 20
brands over 80,000 sq ft of GLA. Next, a unique F&B drivethru
was introduced in November 2021. Its first tenant was a
McDonald’s drive-thru providing more dining options for the
community. Klippa also intends to drive the local arts and culture
scene in line with Penang State Government’s vision to bring arts
and culture to Batu Kawan and fulfil the synonymity of Penang
with street art.
Adrian Mirea, Shopping Centre and Mixed-Use Director at
Ikano Centres said, “As we continue to strengthen our presence
in Malaysia, we want to introduce the Ikano Centres retail
experience to communities in the northern region to mirror the
success of our meeting places in central and southern Malaysia.
Klippa means rock or friend in Swedish, and is the perfect word
play to describe Batu Kawan. With Klippa, we aim to be the rock
in this growing community and to transform Batu Kawan into a
successful commercial and leisure hub in Penang. The emphasis of
this meeting place development is to provide visitors in the region
a holistic customer experience, enhanced with convenience for
all their shopping, dining, entertainment and leisure needs. In
addition, Klippa will also create 5,000 job opportunities for locals
to uplift the social-economic well-being of Penangites.
Arnoud Bakker, Commercial Director at Ikano Centres said,
“We look forward to welcoming more partners that share the
same community-spirit, to further build a retail destination that
Malaysians and tourists will want to visit. Since its opening,
the first phase of Klippa has enjoyed a 98% lease rate, with
established tenants such as IKEA, Harvey Norman and McDonald’s
who have given us the motivation to continue developing and
creating spaces for our communities. As we grow, we will continue
to evaluate the needs of our customers in North Malaysia and
design our Klippa meeting place accordingly.”
Bakker added, “We are also working closely in collaboration
with Aspen Vision City (AVC) and our partners at the neighbouring
Batu Kawan Industrial Park to position Klippa as the place where
people can live, work and create memories together.”
Klippa will have the right combination of tenants to serve the
different needs of its targeted consumers. In addition to the list
of key tenants in operation, Klippa will soon host new openings
of essential offerings and food and beverages with brands such
as TMG Plus Supermarket, Mr DIY, Mr TOY, KFC, Tealive drivethru,
A&W drive-thru, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Kenny Rogers,
Zus Coffee, Chicago Chicken City and a petrol station with an
integrated drive-thru Starbucks.
As part of its name reveal week, Klippa will be organising the
latest edition of its artisan Creative Spark bazaar, partnering with
EKHA to organise a series of upcycling workshops. At the same
time, in conjunction with the relocation of the Penang Container
Art Festival graffiti artwork to Batu Kawan, Klippa will be hosting
a fun run called “Klippa Art Run” this 31 July 2022 and interested
participants can register online from 17 May onwards at
https://bit.ly/KlippaArtRun2022.
12 May-June 2022 | www.b-i.biz