JR East’s Atre to open first shopping mall outside Japan in Taiwan

The East Japan Railway is launching its first overseas shopping mall in Taiwan next month. The mall is opening under JR East’s station complex management subsidiary Atre, following an extended consideration of alternative international locations that included Thailand, Malaysia and the US. Taiwan was was chosen for its affinity with Japanese brands, which will occupy around 60 per cent of the mall’s 51 stores.

The mall will open in Taipei Nan Shan Plaza’s Breeze Center on January 10.

“We have no specific targets or plans at this point on how many shopping malls we want to develop outside Japan,” a spokesman for East Japan Railway said.

The firm has 29 malls to date within Japan.