Far Eastern SOGO's Dome City Mall to Open in H2 2025, Aiming for 'Three Strong Pillars'

(Central News Agency reporter He Xiuling, Taipei, 9th) Far Eastern SOGO Chairperson Huang Ching-wen stated that the Far Eastern Garden City, located at the Taipei Dome, is expected to fully open in the second half of this year. This will break the 'development curse' of the Eastern District, which has lacked large-scale event spaces and purpose-driven foot traffic, and create a new consumption corridor connecting the Eastern District and Xinyi商圈. Garden City's revenue next year is projected to reach NT$10 billion, forming a 'three strong pillars' with the Zhongxiao and Fuxing stores.

Pacific SOGO Department Store Co., Ltd. (SOGO) held its shareholders' meeting today. After the meeting, Huang noted that while Xinyi商圈 has large event spaces to host exhibitions and activities that drive foot traffic, the Zhongxiao商圈 has been constrained by limited space and lacks purpose-driven customer flow.

With the activation of the Taipei Dome, combined with sports events, performances, and nearby resources like the Songshan Cultural and Creative Park and the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, and the full opening of Garden City in the second half of this year, it will become a core hub for人流 transfer, further connecting the Eastern District and Xinyi商圈 into a new consumption corridor.

Regarding the delayed opening, Huang explained that the project's unprecedented scale and complexity in Taipei required rigorous verification procedures for fire safety and crowd evacuation to ensure legal compliance and public safety. The brand and mall operations teams are now ready, and the opening is scheduled for the second half of this year.

Discussing Garden City's future positioning, Huang said it is not intended to be another SOGO, but a 'new-generation experience-oriented mall.' It will introduce new product mixes and brand content, including 'world-class streetwear brands,' to attract younger and family demographics. She emphasized that future retail competition will focus not just on products, but on increasing customer dwell time and revisit frequency, requiring malls to create more experiential and interactive scenarios.

Far Eastern SOGO General Manager of Operations Wu Su-yin also stated that Garden City, through streetwear brands, sports and leisure, and entry-level luxury accessories, will serve as a 'nurturing bridge' for SOGO to cultivate core customers.

Regarding the impact on existing stores, Huang said the Fuxing store, with its clear positioning on high-end luxury customers, will face limited impact and may even benefit from increased overall foot traffic in the area, boosting luxury sales. The Zhongxiao store may initially see a 3% to 5% diversion in foot traffic and sales. However, with the 'three strong pillars' layout of Zhongxiao, Fuxing, and Garden City, it is expected to attract more new customers into the商圈, creating complementary benefits. (Editor: Pan Yijing) 1150609