Shopping centres or tuition centres?

The tuition industry here is a multi-million-dollar one. This is evident when you see more tuition centres and education providers taking up retail space in malls.

So is the shopping centre in danger of becoming one giant tuition centre?

A check of 73 malls across Singapore showed that most of them have at least one education centre located in their premises.

Some of them have as many as 17 education centres. Most of these malls are in the heartland or the outskirts of town.

Some shopping centres are starting to restrict the number of education centres while some have welcomed them.

WE CAN'T TAKE MORE

The United Square mall says its quota for education centres has been met. Located in Thomson Road, it positioned itself as a "kids' learning mall" more than 10 years ago.

Today, it is home to 12 education centres, including big names like The Learning Lab, Lorna Whiston Study Centre and Hua Language Centre. Mr Hauw Kheng Lip, deputy general manager (marketing), UOL Group Limited, which owns the mall, told The New Paper: "We continue to receive a healthy stream of inquiries from education/ enrichment centres although our quota for education/enrichment centres currently has already been met." The Grandstand mall at Turf Club

Road, which was formerly known as Turf City, has eight childcare centres and nine enrichment centres after revamping a year ago as a family lifestyle hub. It too says while there is no quota, it will be "more selective".

Mr Benson Tan, chief executive of Cogent Land Capital, which is the developer of the mall, said it is "mindful of the mall's tenant mix and (want to) ensure a balanced variety of offerings for mall patrons".

WE CAN STILL TAKE

The recently revitalised Bukit Timah Plaza has 17 tuition and enrichment centres. It says it can take in a few more.

The second floor of the mall is specially assigned to education-related centres, said Mr Desmond Chan, chairman of the management committee. The mall, which is 35 years old, used to have at least 20 hair salons, car dealers and massage parlours.

"Three years ago, we had a meeting about the trade mix of the mall and we agreed to bring in trades that are familyfriendly," said Mr Chan.

AsiaMalls, which runs six malls such as Tiong Bahru Plaza, White Sands and Hougang Mall, is still on the lookout for such tenants.

Tiong Bahru Plaza has eight education centres while White Sands has five, according to their websites AsiaMalls Management's general manager Stephanie Ho said: "We do recognise that education and enrichment centres meet shoppers' needs and there is a demand for it. Hence where it can add value to our shoppers' experience and lifestyle, we will try to bring in such tenants."

TREND TO CONTINUE

Mr Samuel Tan, course manager of retail management at Temasek Polytechnic, thinks that it may not be a deliberate effort on the part of the malls to take in education centres. But the convenience of the malls means they are attractive to the education centres.

Property expert Colin Tan from Suntec Real Estate Consultants does not think that these centres are the "first priority" of the malls. For one, they pay much lower rent than other tenants at the mall because they are usually located in an obscure part of the mall.

Retail experts, however, said the presence of education centres would benefit the malls because they guarantee a regular, habitual stream of human traffic.

Dr Lynda Wee, an adjunct associate professor from Nanyang Business School, said: "For hair salons, manicure and pedicure parlours, people will visit once a month. But for enrichment centres, visits are once a week.

"It makes sense to be in a mall so that busy parents can enjoy the convenience and multi-task."

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