Robinsons showcases Pampanga’s best in Starmills

When Robinsons expanded to the suburbs north of Metro Manila, it did not just want to open another mall using the cookie-cutter approach in commercial design. It had to be something new and different. Most importantly, the design had to reflect its location — in this case, Pampanga.

Chief operating officer of Robinsons Land Corporation (RLC) Frederick Go says, "This was a first-class project team, from the consultants to the architects to the engineers to the project manager and contractor."

Located right around the corner of the north diversion exit and just 51 kilometers from the Balintawak exit, the spanking new mall opened late last year and will be fully operational in May. "We can brag that this is the most beautiful mall in the Philippines because it’s the only one that has a storyline. It has character, it has a feel of the place," says Minda Carpio, RLC VP for leasing.

Architect Medardo Cadiz, CEO of Cadiz International with offices in Singapore, Manila and Seattle, designed a mall that highlights the different faces of the province. The facade of the mall reveals Pampanga’s diversity. It tells of the province’s most famous mountain, Mt. Arayat, of its neighboring seaport in Zambales, of its rich rice plains, its fame in lantern making, its swamps and wild life. The mall has five entrances, namely, the Candaba entrance, the Arayat Gate, the Seaport Gate, the Robinsons Gate, and the main entrance, the Star Circle Gate.

Med Cadiz went to the site and researched about the place and the culture. What he found was "a place rich with history and local stories, colorful enough to use as the backdrop for the retail concept and architecture." With Cadiz as architect and Palafox as the architect of record, Robinsons Starmills "captures the essence of the great central plains of the Luzon Island."

Aside from the design, the mall has tailored its tenant mix to meet the market’s demands by getting famous businesses based in Pampanga or those that started in the province. Minda says, "We have Cabalen, which is owned by Maritel Nievera, a San Fernando native. Kapampangans are very clannish when it comes to food. They want to eat their own cuisine." There are also the food outlets that had never had operations at this level. Luring’s, famous for ihaw-ihaw, and Aling Lucing’s, the best kept-secret when it comes to sisig, and Bakeline. "These are the places you go to when you’re in Pampanga," says Minda. Aside from established restaurants, Minda proudly says that Robinsons will be the first home of Sticks, a restaurant owned by Gilbert Pangilinan, a graduate of Culinary Institute of America (CIA) who trained at Robert De Niro’s Nobu restaurant in New York.

Because of the locals’ love affair with food, there will be additional 15 al fresco casual dining restaurants and coffee shops in a park-like setting aside from the ones inside.

It’s not only on the food side that Kapampangan entrepreneurs have made their mark, but also on the retail side: Anonymous of Ricco Ocampo, Folded and Hung, which started in Manila, franchises run by Kapampangans, cell phone dealers and service-oriented outlets.

Smaller entrepreneurs prefer "incubator leasing" (excuse the mall jargon) or booths in the hallways, sort of testing the waters first. "There are many successful businesses that started like this, such as Island Souvenirs, Unisilver and Ang Gara. It’s a very good start for entrepreneurs."

The biggest anchor stores at the two-floor Robinsons Starmills are Robinsons Department Store and Big R Super Center, which packed in the crowds last Christmas and have developed a strong following in the area. "People here are glad that they don’t have to go to Manila to get discounted items," says Third Salanguit, Big R senior marketing coordinator. "Big R’s ready-to-eat food section has the old favorites here, which are different from our branches in Novaliches and Pasig." Always, it seems, we go back to food.

The high-end stores are also represented with the coming of the Stores Specialists outlets and a Ford dealership. "Ford Pampanga has been doing so well, better than the Tarlac dealership; there are months its sales are almost as good as Manila’s." Low to mid-market stores that Manilans love – Starbucks, Cinderella, P99 Store, etc — will also occupy part of the 40,000 leasable space.

"In my working with Robinsons Land for 30 years, this is the most exciting project I’ve had," says Minda.

Well, we’ve one more reason to go north.