Every time I drive pass the building, I’m always curious about what it looks like. Then, one day I got an email to visit the mall prior to the official launch and it was the best timing to visit without the first crowd! LaLaport had been inviting media earlier this year to visit but many of the stores didn’t open until our visit yesterday. Although not many stores are ready for the official launch, we still got to visit some that are unique and featured.
The official launch date for LaLaport BBCC is on the 20th of January. They did invite me to join again on the launching date and I might visit the mall again. Personally, I had estimated that about 10%-30% of the stores are ready for the launch whilst the rest will be fully ready in Feb-Mar 2022 (similar to Pavilion Bukit Jalil’s case). So, I will wait before I visit the mall once again for a full and complete tour. Nevertheless, the interior design of this mall is such a beautiful sight. It has a mix of modern simplicity and Japanese style that is not like any of the malls in Klang Valley.
Launch Event (20th Jan 2022)
It was great to join the official launch event and start the year with Ong Ong Prosperity. The event started in the early morning. They had 2000 goody bags for the first customers in line and more if you download the app.
I highly suggest downloading the app as it has a great directory along with centralized sales news and vouchers.
What is LaLaport?
Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd.’s first regional retail facility in Southeast Asia, the second LaLaport outside of Japan, after Mitsui Shopping Park LaLaport Shanghai Jinqiao, which opened in April 2021. This is a flagship project and LaLaport BBCC will be one of the largest facilities (with a store floor space of 82,600sqm (est.)) among all the LaLaport malls including those located in Japan. It will open on 20th January 2022 and approximately 400 stores will open in sequence. (Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd., a leading global real estate company headquartered in Tokyo.)
Mitsui Shopping Park LaLaport debuts in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Southeast Asia. LaLaport BBCC will create interaction, livelihood, and relaxation through its core mix of commercial facilities, offices, residential, hotels, and other facilities. In addition to global brands, there will be numerous local favorite brands and Japanese restaurants, as well as brands making a first appearance in Malaysia such as NITORI and Nojima, which are familiar brands in Japan. Comfortable spaces such as event spaces and food areas are available at the mall to create new customer experiences. In the pipeline are an integrated mobile app and loyalty reward point program, for a new, convenient, and even more holistic shopping experience. LaLaport BBCC also provides a worker-friendly environment.
Attractions
- NITORI – Unique and Attractive Furniture & Interior Specialty Store
- Nojima – Digital & Home Appliance Specialty Store
- Star Child – Nursery with Japanese Quality of Childcare
- Coo&RIKU – Japan’s Largest Pet Store & Attached Cat Cafe
- Nitinagin&Co – Thai way of Malaysia’s First Indoor Thai Floating Market
- Shin’Labo – Chef James Won’s Elevated Yoshuku Creations.
- Hawker Chan – Famous Singaporean Chicken Rice
- DONQ/Mini One – Long-established Kobe Bakery Store
- YAKINIKU SIZZLE by YAKINIQUEST – Wagyu Lover’s Yakiniku Spot
- MATCHA Eight – Michelin-starred Chef’s Ice Cream Recipe
- Tamaruya Honten Steakhouse – Steakhouse from Established Wasabi Brand
- Zoff – Japanese High Quality and Reasonably-priced Eyeware Shop
- JONETZ by DON DON DONKI – Excited to see how it’s different from the others
- WeGo – Cashless Convenience Store; just walk in, grab the items, and go.
- Rollerwa+ – Korean Indoor Roller Skate Rink
- Marta’s Kitchen – Spanish Cuisine
- Buena Brasa Gastropub – Spanish and European Cuisine
- What’s On Tap – Coffee Store Providing Full Sensory Experience
- Beer Bank – Largest Beer Collection Bar in Malaysia
- Fans – Premium Sweets Store from Japan.
- Miyatake Sanuki Udon – Imported and Freshly Made Udon
- Take-Away – Grab and Go “Hole-In-The-Wall” restaurant
- Sony Store – Flagship
- Hackett London – British Style Essential British Kit
- Mind/Kind – Multi-label Store of Streetwear Labels and Emerging Contemporary Designer Brands
- Zepp Kuala Lumpur
One of Japan’s leading concert halls. It will open in the “entertainment hub” area of the block adjacent to LaLaport BBCC. The mall plans to have regular music events and campaigns in this facility in collaboration with Zepp, which operates 10 other facilities in Japan and Taiwan. This will be the first-ever Zepp hall in Malaysia. There are also
plans to collaborate with other adjacent partners, such as the “Malaysian Grand Bazaar”, which focuses on local specialties, as well as Golden Screen Cinemas.
Here at the very first Zepp hall in Malaysia, visitors can look forward to an extensive line-up of events from cultural shows to music tie-ups in collaboration with Zepp Kuala Lumpur. With a seating capacity of up to around 2,500 and 8 VIP areas, Zepp Kuala Lumpur is renowned not only for live performances by famous artists using the highest quality sound and lighting but also for corporate events, fashion shows, eSports tournaments, martial arts events, etc and is also set to act as a new cultural exchange base between Malaysia and Japan in the future. - Malaysia Grand Bazaar
Malaysia Grand Bazaar (MGB) is positioned as a first-of-its-kind center of Malaysian culture & heritage, a must-see place for both locals and foreigners. Visitors can experience street food, handicrafts, contemporary crafts, and cultural performances within its 100,000 sq. ft. premises featuring carefully curated artisan brands from all states in Malaysia
Floor Plans and Locations
The mall is structured to have endless discovery and excitement for each and every visitor. The main route is in an endless looping oval shape and there are many signboards that let you know where is the next atrium or which atrium you’re currently located at so that you wouldn’t feel lost. There are also plentiful of public restrooms on each floor so you won’t have to worry about fighting with people.
The Grand Steps is located outside of the main atrium. It has music and an illuminated staircase with LED lights. If not mistaken, it should lead you to the train station and/or the service apartment. (This is something I need to check again when there’s more information online. Currently, the information online is pretty scarce.) There is also a covered escalator section that is similar to the outdoor escalator at the Pavilion KL mall and it is completely covered with glass panels.
At the south atrium, there is a door that leads you to the WOW plaza and Gourmet Street. The information counter is located at the south entrance as well. If I am not mistaken, GSC (Golden Screen Cinemas) will be located out here instead along with Zepp KL and Malaysia Grand Bazaar (this is mentioned in the Entertainment Hub tab above.)
WOW Plaza
This is a unique event space located at the center of Gourmet Street with the biggest “W” structure in the whole of Malaysia. We are currently only allowed to use the door on level GF to access the WOW Plaza. There isn’t much information about how exactly Mitsui will utilize this space so let’s wait for the progress in the next few months.
Gourmet Street
The Gourmet Street is similar to the Connection area (pubs and Starbucks in the outer area of the mall) but the difference is that this place is mainly for take-and-go, similar to the “Depachika Marche” take-away F&B food area on level LG1. While Starbucks and Shabu-yo (along with the rest of the still-in-renovation stores) are yet to be ready for the media preview, we were greeted by a friendly and yummy Matcha ice cream store, Matcha Eight. Read about Matcha Eight here.
Central Rooftop Garden
Located at Level 4, it has a large roofed step stage that is surrounded by greenery and trees. This space is approximately 1,700sqm and it has a “Grand Steps” right next to the main entrance which will feature various forms of illumination and in tandem with seasonal events. The space is so huge that there are countless of opportunities and ideas on how they can use it for different events. You can see so many other buildings from up here as well.
Coo&RIKU
Another exciting spot is right next to the central stage where it holds a Cat Cafe with many climbing and jumping spaces for the cats. In Japan, Coo&RIKU is the largest pet store and they have a cat cafe that holds about 50 various breeds of cats that customers are allowed to interact with. It has four different themes but as it has yet to be open for the public, we were not allowed to go inside and see what it looks like.
Featured Stores During Tour
There weren’t many shops that were ready for the media preview at the time. So, we only got to visit a few stores for the preview, namely: NITORI, N-Sleep, and Nojima. Unfortunately, there isn’t a lot of information available online so here’s all I can gather.
NITORI
Nitori sells a lot of household-related items with a similar concept to IKEA but the items are from Japan. Despite that the shop isn’t as big as IKEA’s showroom, there are plentiful of things to shop here. During our tour, we were introduced to several products that are really special.
- N-Click Chest: You don’t need any nails and hammering. A simple push and ‘click’ will suffice! Besides, it would only take you about 10 minutes to assemble the whole drawer chest
- Diatomite Bath Mat: Fuss-free, quick and easy carpet.
- N-Cool Bedding and Comforter: Three Levels of Cooling for the 24/7 Summer Time
- Most Expensive Electrical Sofa
- Light Porcelain from Japan
N-Sleep
Firstly, I have to apologize for some of the photos looking like they’re from the Sim 1 game. My filter went wrong while I was taking the photos. Secondly, this is part of NITORI but they are specifically for ‘sleeping’ only even though in NITORI they have items related to ‘sleeping’ too. There are so many bed frames, pillows, comforters, and mattresses available.
Nojima
Nojima is one of the leading retailers in Japan and Asia. The one in LaLaport is their first flagship store in Malaysia and it is around the NITORI store. They would provide innovative retail and experiential offerings with a large range of electrical, IT, furniture and bedding products.
View on the first day of Launch
Many shops were ready for business but it’s not more than 50% of the capacity. Some food places are ready too. Go to LG foodcourt for more restaurants.
Food Areas
Aside from the regular restaurants on random floors, LaLaport has three dedicated spaces for eateries and food courts. On LG1, you will find “Depachika Marche”, a specific food area just for takeaways only. Right beside the “Depachika Marche”, there is a “Cafeteria” which is a casual food court for simple eateries.
On GF, there is a Gourmet Street which was mentioned earlier, under the WOW Plaza segment. Currently, there are only three visible shops that were seen: Starbucks, Matcha Eight, and SHABU-YO. We look forward to seeing more shops that brighten up the place with more decoration in the next few months!
Lastly, on L4, there is a Garden Dining section that is very family-friendly, especially for kids! There is a large playground area for kids and families can sit nearby to watch them as they play. Did you know that they have a toilet specifically for toddlers? It’s superbly adorable! Everything was made for a toddler’s height and you can look over the door to make sure that they’re doing okay. There is a large nursery room and the bathroom for women is pretty spacious. Just a cubicle alone is the size of a regular women’s bathroom cubicle for mothers (who need to place their baby aside (on the baby bed) while solving their human needs).
Benefits
Loyalty Program
The mall will launch the LaLaport BBCC membership app, which provides one-stop customer service on smartphones. Through the app, LaLaport BBCC will deliver the latest information, such as sales promotions and events, as well as premium coupons which offer members-only discounts and services.
Among the tentative benefits include:
- 1% reward on the purchase price at participating stores
- Regular point-up weeks
- Further bonus points for shopping during sale periods
- Gift points for new app registrations
- Birthday month gift points
- Gift points for in-app game participation
- A number of additional benefits, including discount coupon distribution from stores
Hiring Locals and Comfortable Working Environment
LaLaport BBCC will also collaborate with human resource companies in Malaysia to support the recruitment of employees to work in tenants’ outlets. In order to create a comfortable working environment, LaLaport BBCC is preparing an ergonomic and hygienic staff lounge for mall employees and staff.
The space will feature:
- Green plants
- Napping space
- Powder rooms
- Free Wi-Fi, smartphone, and PC charging area
- Sterilization device installation
- Partition boards at counter seats for secure social distancing
LaLaport Details:
Mitsui Shopping Park LaLaport BUKIT BINTANG CITY CENTRE
Bukit Bintang City Centre, No.2, Jalan Hang Tuah, 55100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
- Number of Stores: 400 stores.
- Total Floor Area: 133,000sqm
- Building Size: 5 floors above ground; 5 floors below ground
Transport:
- LRT Line – Hang Tuah
- MRT Line – Hang Tuah
- MRT Line – Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line “Merdeka Station”
Parking
The million-dollar question: “How much is the parking rate in LaLaport Bukit Bintang City Centre in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia?” I’ve got it covered for you. So the parking rate in LaLaport BBCC, KL Malaysia is RM3 per hour with no maximum cap. It’s the same charge for every day. There isn’t a special rate for weekends and holidays, as well as nighttime.
There are 2-5 floors with 2,00 units of parking spots. Under the first impression, it seems like there are many entrances in the parking lot that lead you into the shopping mall elevators and escalators.
