PHILIPPINE PHENOMENA “BENCH” TO OPEN FIRST U.S. STORE AT SERRAMONTE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PHILIPPINE PHENOMENA “BENCH” TO OPEN FIRST U.S. STORE AT SERRAMONTE
New Store to Serve Growing Multi-Cultural Population of San Francisco Bay Area
DALY CITY, CA (June 1, 2005) – Bench, the Philippine’s hottest clothing and accessories retailer, is opening its first store in the United States at Serramonte in Daly City, CA just south of San Francisco, on June 3.Often compared to U.S.-based GAP, Bench offers men’s, women’s and kid’s apparel and accessories, including footwear, housewares, watches and more.Having dominated the Philippines and mainland China, Bench is now set to expand into the U.S.
Currently, Bench has more than 120 stores in the Philippines and throughout Asia. After an extensive search, Bench chose to open its first U.S. store at Serramonte based on the center’s location and surrounding population.Bench’s primary target market in the U.S. is Asian-Americans, which make-up 35% of Serramonte’s trade area.
“The ethnic population of Daly City and surrounding areas and Serramonte’s ability to attract a wide range of shoppers, made it the perfect location for us to open our first U.S. store,” said Mr. Ben Chaun, Bench CEO & Creative Director.
The new Bench store at Serramonte will occupy 1,257 square feet and will offer a range of merchandise from jackets and pants to cosmetics and sunglasses.Bench will join Serramonte’s current tenant line-up of more than 120 specialty shops and restaurants.
Bench is owned by Philippine-based Suyen Corporation and is the Philippine’s largest retailer. Bench opened in 1987 with a small store selling men’s t-shirts.Since then, Bench has grown to include ladies fashions, underwear, fragrances, housewares, snacks and a wide array of the other lifestyle products and services.
Serramonte is a premier shopping destination for North San Mateo County with over 1 million people in a 10-mile radius featuring more than 120 diverse shops, restaurants and services.Tenants include anchors Target Greatland, Macy’s and Mervyn’s; specialty shops include Hollister Co., Pac Sun, Journeys, Victoria’s Secret Beauty, Forever 21, Hot Topic, The Children´s Place, Starbucks, Kay Jewelers and Sanrio.Serramonte is located in Daly City, CA off Hwy 280 on Serramonte Boulevard.For more information, visit www.serramontecenter.com.
Serramonte Center is owned by Capital AND Counties U.S.A. INC., headquartered in San Francisco. Capital and Counties U.S.A. Inc., a real estate investment and development company, is part of the U.K. based Liberty International PLC. The U.S. subsidiary has approximately 2.7 million square feet of office and retail space under ownership. U.S. property holdings are focused in California and also include Plaza Escuela, Walnut Creek; The Marketplace Center, Davis; The Senator Office Building, Sacramento; The Willows Shopping Center, Concord; and The Pacific Financial Center, Los Angeles.
Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE: JLL) is the world’s leading real estate services and money management firm with a portfolio of approximately 800 million square feet of property under management worldwide, including more than 280 shopping centers on four continents. In the United States, Jones Lang LaSalle is the largest third-party manager of regional shopping centers with a 33-million-square-foot portfolio of more than 50 regional malls and transportation terminals across 23 states plus the District of Columbia. For more information, visit www.joneslanglasalle.com/retail.
From outerwear, tops and bottoms, tees, knits, denim and shorts to the latest styles in underwear, Bench’s collection of ready to wear items combines functionality with an “easy look.”The Bench brand was established in Manila in 1987 and has since grown into the Philippines’ leading lifestyle retail store with more than 120 boutiques in the country and around the world.For more information, call the new Serramonte Bench at 650/992-8082 or visit www.benchtm.com.
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