Readers rejoice! We finally know the exact location for Taiwan’s Eslite mega bookstore chain, Eslite Spectrum, which was initially set to debut in Kuala Lumpur next year.
The first-ever Eslite branch in Southeast Asia will be a tenant to the upcoming luxury mall, “The Starhill: Home Of The Tastemakers”, and it’ll be bigger in size and purpose.
Now, now. If you’ve never heard of the renowned “eslite spectrum” (誠品生活), take note that it’s more than just a bookstore. It is essentially, “a creative cultural venue with a rich selection of Chinese, English and Malay language books, as well as music, design and hand-made goods, performing arts, themed restaurants and coffee shops, lifestyle brands, and diverse cutting-edge cultural and creative brands.”
The Starhill is proud to welcome “Eslite spectrum” as it’s anchor tenant, which will command the entire Level 1 space with its 70,191 sq ft store along with a street-fronting F&B outlet on the Ground Level. The massive store will also feature a sweeping café terrace overlooking the Starhill Piazza, where creative events and programmes will be staged all year round.
Following the signing of a tenancy agreement between Joseph Yeoh, Vice President of YTL Land & Development Bhd, and Mercy Wu, Chairperson of the Eslite Group, the mega bookstore chain will bring the essence of contemporary Taiwanese culture and creativity to the heart of KL. According to Joseph, the partnership will be in line with The Starhill’s plan to create KL’s ultimate premium social destination for all to celebrate literature, fashion, food, music and more.
Mercy Wu, Chairperson of Eslite Group said, “From Taiwan to the Chinese community and then Asia, we are very excited to establish a new flagship branch, the first store in Southeast Asia, in the capital of Malaysia. Eslite is committed to becoming the most influential, unique, omni-channel, cultural tourism brand and a platform for the cultural and creative industry in the Chinese community and Asia.”
Despite earlier reports stating it would open next year, “Eslite spectrum” is now scheduled to be opening in 2022, which is a year after the luxury mall opens to the public. It is not definitive on how many stores will be operating during The Starhill’s launch next year, but Joseph stated that there will be a collection of 8-9 stores by early 2021, and by the end of the year, most of the tenant space will be occupied.
When asked how The Starhill will differ from other luxury malls, he stated, “We are a boutique mall and that’s our biggest strength. Most of the clientele and tenants that we have here will be first new-to-market stores, such as Tom Ford, Balmain, Phillipp Plein, just to name a few.” He added, “Starhill will offer something unique, and now with Eslite coming in as one of our flagship tenants, they too will offer a unique experience.”
While we wait some time to experience the massive “Eslite” store in Malaysia, you can channel your excitement towards The Starhill Dining which is set to open next month. Read about it here.
