JOHOR BAHRU (March 29): Over 5,000 job opportunities will be up for grabs following the completion of the RM900 million gross development value Toppen Shopping Centre in Tebrau, IKEA Southeast Asia’s latest shopping centre, by the third quarter of 2019.

Managing Director, Christian Rojkjaer, said the 1.1 million sq ft shopping centre was the group’s third in Malaysia and was expected to accommodate some 300 retailers offering products and services that would complement IKEA Store Tebrau, the mall’s anchor tenant.

“The Toppen Shopping Centre is expected to attract 15 million visitors in 2020, not only from Johor Bahru but also from the southern region of Malaysia and Singapore. It will also bring in thousands of business and job opportunities.

“We choose Johor Bahru because we can see the everyday development that is currently going on, especially within Iskandar Malaysia. We are proud to be part of that development and contributor to the economy,” he said at a press conference here today.

Aside from job creation, Rojkjaer said, the establishment of the new shopping centre would also help boost other economic sectors including local small and medium enterprises.

“We are already entering into partnerships with local companies here, not only for resale purposes but also for supply. We have local companies that are currently supplying locally-produced halal meatballs and chicken wings to us, so generally we are contributing to the whole supply and demand economic chain,” he said.

Visitors of the Toppen Shopping Centre would be able to choose from four levels of international and local retail shops, family-friendly facilities, multi-purpose spaces, great entertainment, dining and sporting experiences.

The other two IKEA-anchored shopping centres in Malaysia are IPC Shopping Centre, Damansara and MyTown Shopping Centre, Cheras.