Robinsons Land eyes BPO center in Davao City mall

Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC) is embarking on a new project that is expected to house the largest call center or business process outsourcing operations (BPO) in Mindanao.

In a statement, RLC said it will make available 5, 000 square meters of office space within its planned two-level shopping mall in Davao City along J.P. Laurel.

RLC said the move is intended to take advantage of the continued expansion of the call center/BPO industry which is seen to grow by at least 100 percent next year.

According to the Contact Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP), existing call centers will continue to expand, with clients giving high marks to the quality of their services.

Aside from the call center, the mall will also house retail affiliates Robinsons Supermarket & Handyman Do It Best, quick service restaurants, and health & beauty outlets.

Robinsons Davao will be RLC’s second shopping mall in Mindanao. It is targetted for completion in mid-2008.

"We believe that this format will easily compliment the lifestyle of call center employees who look forward to some rest and recreation after work," said Robinsons Malls general manager Cornelio S. Mapa.

Davao City, the second largest city in the world, is considered as the educational, industrial, trade and information technology center of Mindanao. The city has a solid IT infrastructure and has a substantial base of proficient IT professionals who graduated from reputable locally-based colleges and universities.

Aside from shopping malls, RLC also owns and operates residential and office condominiums, town houses, housing subdivisions and hotels all over the Philippines. It also claims to be the largest office space landlord in the country today.

RLC has five office buildings, namely Galeria Corporate Center in Quezon City, Robinsons Summit Center in Makati City, Robinsons Equitable Tower in Pasig City, and Robinsons Cybergate Centers I and II in Mandaluyong City. It also houses call centers in five of its 18 malls across the country.