Freehold Shops At Lucky Plaza On Sale For $11.4M — A Vanishing Breed of Storefront On Orchard Road

Two freehold strata shops at Lucky Plaza have hit the market at a combined price of $11.4 million. The adjoining units on the ground floor have a total built up area of 882 sq ft, and the guide price translates to $13,000 psf on the strata area.

While they are being marketed together, each unit – which spans 441 sq ft – can also be bought separately at a guide price of $5.7 million, according to CBRE, the sole marketing agent.

The units are located near the atrium of Lucky Plaza and enjoy a 7m street frontage facing Orchard Road. In addition, the units come with F&B approvals, and are well-positioned to capitalise on their retail visibility and high pedestrian traffic along Orchard Road.

But Joshua Giam, Director of Capital Markets at CBRE, says that the retail units are able to accommodate a range of alternative uses, including jewellery shops, pawnshops and other retail concepts, subject to approvals.

Lucky Plaza is a familiar landmark along the Orchard Road shopping belt ever since it opened in 1977, and the strata-titled mixed-use development consists of a six-storey retail podium and an apartment tower. The development sits on a busy segment of the shopping district, close to other landmark retail buildings like Tang Plaza, ION Orchard, Ngee Ann City and Paragon.

“The property enjoys prominent street frontage along Orchard Road, a highly desirable attribute that is rarely available in the market,” says Giam. He adds that recent transactions within Lucky Plaza have demonstrated strong demand for strata retail space.

He cites three Level 1 units in the mall that have achieved prices ranging from $9,755 psf to $17,784 psf, despite these being non-street facing units. “Given the property’s prominent frontage and high visibility, we believe it is well-positioned to command a premium,” says Giam.

Resale records also indicate that several strata shops at Lucky Plaza have transacted in the last few years. URA caveats show that 14 resale transactions have been lodged so far this year:

Recent commercial transactions at Lucky Plaza

Strata-titled retail units are attractive to some asset owners because they let smaller investors buy into retail exposure. Owners also keep direct control, as they collect rental independently and can sell whenever they choose.

This means that dozens of individual landlords each manage their own unit within a strata mall, and there’s no one to curate the tenant mix and makes it more difficult for a majority of owners to agree on a common direction for the mall.

In Singapore, strata-titled retail lots are increasingly scarce, as URA has removed strata subdivision of commercial property in prime areas, including Orchard Road, since 2022. None of the strata shops there will be replaced.

Currently, malls such as Lucky Plaza, Orchard Towers and Orchard Shopping Centre are among a handful of remaining strata titled shopping malls in Orchard Road. But there are a growing number of Reit-owned and managed shopping malls, such as ION, Paragon and Forum.

“Coupled with existing permanent F&B approvals for both units, we expect strong interest from both investors and owner-occupiers,” says Giam. The units will be sold via an Expression of Interest exercise which closes on October 15.