Shopping Central

IN BANGKOK, MALLS ARE PULLING OUT ALL THE STOPS TO PAMPER THEIR CUSTOMERS.

Bangkok’s frenetic retail landscape is as varied as it is vast. You’ll find the best bargains in its street markets, some of which come evocatively alive only at night. With over 15,000 stalls, the Chatuchak Weekend Market is a veritable legend. Then there are the malls, ranging from old to spanking new, conventional to cutting edge. As any Indian shopper can attest, our own malls have a lot to learn from them in terms of innovation and the lengths one should be willing to go to enhance the customer experience. In retail heaven Bangkok, nothing is so good that it cannot be improved.

Without a doubt, at the top of the pecking order is Central Embassy. Home to the fanciest Thai and international designer brands, this mall with a stunning aluminium façade and fluid twisting form is set on the former gardens of the British Embassy. It’s also home to the newly opened 36-storey Park Hyatt Bangkok. With world-class restaurants and shops, and eyeball-grabbing events held through the year, you’d think this mall couldn’t get any better. Think again.

To see the most stunning change, you’ll have to climb to the top floor of the mall. What used to be an exhibition area on the sixth floor has been reborn into Open House, a vast, sun-filled space with tall ceilings and stunning views of Bangkok.