(Yicai) March 3 -- Chinese high-end fashion department store SKP will anchor a new mixed-use commercial center on the Zhujiang New Town Racecourse site, which was recently purchased by property developer Yuexiu Group for the highest average price per square meter in Guangzhou's history.

Yuexiu is linking arms with Hualian Group Investment Holding, the parent company of SKP, to transform the racecourse project into an urban complex spread over 125,000 square meters, Guangzhou-based Yuexiu said yesterday, citing the co-operation agreement signed by the two parties that day. The complex will consist of a park, shopping outlets, hotel, offices and residential spaces. Construction, which is expected to last three to four years, could start as early as the end of this month.

Once it opens, Guangzhou SKP will bring in global luxury fashion brands, aiming to become a new international consumer hotspot with annual sales exceeding CNY10 billion (USD1.4 billion). The project is expected to boost the local fashion scene, exhibitions, tourism and high-end services, greatly enhancing Guangzhou's appeal for premium retail, Yuexiu Chairman Chen Qiang said at the signing ceremony.

The racecourse site is located in Guangzhou's central business district and was once home to the Guangzhou Racecourse. After the racetrack closed in 1999, the area was used by car dealerships, home furnishing stores, restaurants and other businesses. In 2021, Guangzhou began redeveloping the site, aiming to create a large mixed-use residential and commercial complex suited to the CBD.

Yuexie secured the racecourse site on Feb. 25 after a grueling 243-round bidding process, with a bid of CNY23.6 billion (USD3 billion), the second-highest land auction price in Guangzhou’s history after the Guangzhou Asian Games City project in 2009. Residential units on the site sold at an average price of CNY85,000 (USD12,332) per square meter, setting a new record for Guangzhou.

SKP is the luxury retail arm under the Hualian Group. Its first store opened in Beijing in 2007, setting the standard for high-end shopping malls in the country. Last year, SKP’s sales topped CNY24 billion (USD3.5 billion). It has ranked first for single-store sales among department stores nationwide for several years.

Since 2018, Beijing-based Hualian has been expanding its high-end department store business to other cities, opening SKP locations in Xi'an, Chengdu and Wuhan with a fifth store currently under construction in Hangzhou.

Editor: Kim Taylor