South China Mall

When measured in terms of gross leasable area, South China Mall in Dongguan, China (previously New South China Mall) is the largest shopping center in the world, but in terms of total area, it comes in third overall behind Iran Mall (which has extensive non-shopping space including a musical fountain, food court, mosque, and hotel).

When South China Mall first opened in 2005, it was largely empty for more than ten years because few retailers ever signed up, earning it the moniker "dead mall." After major reconstruction and repairs, the mall started to draw tenants, according to a CNN piece from 2015, even though a sizable chunk of it was still vacant. Another story from January 2018 stated that the mall had an IMAX-style theater and theme park, and that after more than a decade of high vacancy, most retail spaces were expected to be filled soon.

In the Wanjiang District of Dongguan, a southern coastal Chinese city, the mall was constructed on former farms. Hu Guirong (Alex Hu), a billionaire in the instant noodle business, was the project's driving force. South China Mall surpassed Golden Resources Mall to become the biggest mall in the world when it first opened. Its construction is expected to cost $1.3 billion.

Utopia Part 3: the World's Largest Shopping Mall, a short film by filmmaker Sam Green about the South China Mall, had its world premiere at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival and was aired on PBS's documentary series POV.

GLA: 659,612 m2

Location: Dongguan, China