Ten years later, commercial centre finally cuts the ribbon

The place to be: An Dong already boasts 80 per cent occupancy

The new five-storey An Dong Plaza, opened just in time to catch the throng of local and international visitors during the year-end business season, will sell souvenirs, cosmetics and fashion items including locally made brocades, handicrafts and leather products.
The mezzanine will be set aside for electronic and IT products including mobile phones and computers.
Van Thinh Phat company, the project’s developer, said the plaza had attracted a large number of tenants, with more than 80 per cent of its 18,000-square-metre space already sold.
A 10-year lease for a unit ranges between $11,000 and $160,000, depending on size and location.
Tenants can pay in one instalment or over 10 years with financial support from local banks. Their leases are transferable mid-term.
Work on the plaza, originally promoted by Viet Hoa Bank, began in 1993 before being suspended in late 1997 due to financial difficulties.
The new owner, Van Thinh Phat, resumed construction in June 2002 based on the original design.
When the rest of the plaza is completed, it will have restaurants and a service section from the fourth to seventh floors and a five-star hotel with 392 rooms from floors eight to 21, the Windsor Plaza Hotel – all of which are set to open by the end of this month.
Nguyen Huu Lap, deputy general director of Van Thinh Phat Company, said his company would combine the advantages of the shopping centre, restaurants and service section with the facilities of the hotel.
The latter include a 1,500-seat conference hall with a modern audio system, high-speed Internet transmission and other facilities to exploit MICE (meeting, incentives, conventions and exhibitions) activities.
He told Vietnam Investment Review last week that his company had established ties with more than 10 travel agencies from Germany, Australia, Japan, Canada, the US, Taiwan, Hong Kong, mainland China and Thailand to promote MICE programmes at the hotel.
“As meeting-related tourism is showing promise, the Windsor Plaza Hotel is expected to become a venue for MICE activities,” he said, adding that up to 70 per cent of the hotel’s 392 rooms have now been registered [by the travel agencies] for the year-end peak season.