Gaw Capital says Hong Kong protests affected renovation schedule of its newly opened mall
- Gaw Capital and its partners own a portfolio of 29 neighbourhood shopping centres and car parks in the city worth US$4.48 billion
- Poor sentiment continues to affect transactions for retail shops as buyers sell at massive losses
Hong Kong private equity fund Gaw Capital Partners, which owns and operates 29 shopping centres and car parks in the city, said that the ongoing protests have affected its tenants and renovation efforts.
Gary Wong Chi-him, public affairs and marketing director at Gaw Capital, said that “businesses in a few of our malls have been affected since the start of the third quarter and we will consider what discounts can be offered, [although] there is no one-off plan”.
“Some tenants told me there were a lot fewer patrons. Because of the social movement, people have been going out less, particularly during the weekends,” said Wong, adding that areas such as Wong Tai Sin have been affected more than others because of frequent clashes between police and protesters.
Gaw Capital and its partners have acquired the portfolio worth HK$35 billion (US$4.48 billion) worth of neighbourhood malls and car parks since March 2017.
Simon Wong Ka-wo, president of the Hong Kong Federation of Restaurants & Related Trades, recently said that shops and eateries had lost an estimated HK$10.5 billion worth of business between June and October.
He added that retailers were not particularly optimistic about the Christmas shopping season.