Taubman Asia moves into shopping mall market in China
Taubman Asia is venturing into the mainland by opening shopping centres in Xian and Zhengzhou, which president Rene Tremblay says are the first steps into the huge market
Rene Tremblay, president of Taubman Asia, the Asian arm of US mall operator Taubman Centres, is responsible for driving Taubman’s shopping centre expansion in Asia-Pacific.
Appointed to his current position in October 2010, he has more than 30 years of experience in the real estate industry, having been involved in international investments for almost 20 years. Before joining Taubman, he was the executive vice-president, real estate, and president of the real estate group of Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec, one of the 10 largest property portfolios in the world.
Why did Taubman Asia choose Xian in Shaanxi and Zhengzhou in Henan for its foray into China?
When we were deciding our China strategy, we selected 31 cities and shortlisted eight. Xian and Zhengzhou were part of the eight that we identified as having great potential.
Do you have a target number of shopping centres to be opened on the mainland?
At this point, it is very difficult to speculate on the number of properties we will have. China is a huge market and we want to become a meaningful player. Naturally, we are monitoring all the opportunities present to us on the mainland. At this point, we want to make sure the progress of our existing projects is going well. Eventually and naturally there will be more. If you ask me “what are your plans in the short or long term”, we try to be prudent, as we will do things step by step. It is just a matter of managing the timing.