A greener retail vision takes shape as SM Nuvali opens in October

SM Prime launches first of five flagship malls in eco-community master plan.

SM Prime Holdings is slated to open its highly anticipated premium mall SM Nuvali in Santa Rosa, Laguna, by October 2026. It will be the conglomerate’s 91st mall nationwide.

The mall marks a new chapter for SM Supermalls, featuring an eco-community master plan and a more laidback lifestyle layout. It will have a floor area of 190,000 square meters, comparable to SM City Baguio and SM Southmall, and will house more than 82,000 square meters of gross leasable area. The development also signals the continued expansion of SM’s lifestyle-driven mall portfolio.

A one-hectare air-conditioned indoor garden with playgrounds and a paw park anchors the design, positioning it among the group’s most nature-integrated retail developments to date. Other features include 24 electric vehicle charging stations, trash-to-cash recycling and e-waste collection facilities, and open-air promenades, reflecting the company’s push toward more sustainable, experience-oriented retail spaces.

The development also carries a symbolic nod to an Ayala Land estate, as Nuvali was developed by Ayala Land, one of its major competitors in the sector, on land owned by the Yulo sugar baron family, highlighting the layered history of one of South Luzon’s most established mixed-use communities.

SM Nuvali is the first of five flagship SM malls slated to open annually from 2026 to 2030. The developer continues to expand its portfolio of community-centric spaces where retail, lifestyle, and leisure converge, as mall design increasingly shifts toward experience-led destinations.