6 Ways SM Supermalls Is Changing What a Mall Day Looks Like

From pickleball courts and concerts to creator communities and a new flagship destination, the classic mall day is becoming something much bigger.

Going to the mall used to be pretty straightforward: shop, eat, maybe catch a movie, then head home. Now? You could accidentally spend the entire day there.

A quick coffee run can turn into a pickleball session, an art exhibit, dinner, a movie, and whatever little side quest catches your attention along the way. And that shift matters because malls are increasingly becoming what urban planners and sociologists often call “third spaces”: places outside home and work or school where people can simply gather, connect, unwind, and spend time together.

For Filipinos, the mall has arguably played that role for years. It’s where barkadas meet, families spend Sundays, students kill time between classes, runners gather before events, fandoms celebrate, and people discover new interests without necessarily planning to.

SM Supermalls seems to be leaning even further into that role.

Following the opening of its 90th Philippine mall, SM City Zamboanga, SM is continuing to expand not only in size, but in the kinds of experiences people can find inside its spaces.

Here are six ways the mall experience is changing.

1. Your next mall trip could basically become a weekend itinerary

One of SM’s biggest upcoming openings is SM Nuvali, set to arrive this November along the growing South Luzon corridor. Rather than positioning itself as simply another place to shop, the new destination is being developed around an eat-and-play concept, with dining and entertainment becoming major parts of the experience.

One thing to watch out for: SM Nuvali is also expected to introduce the country’s first LED cinema screen experience of its kind.

So, yes, “going to the mall” might require a little more planning now.

2. You can apparently go from malling to major concert mode

In Cebu, mall-based entertainment is getting significantly bigger. The newly opened SM Seaside Cebu Arena can accommodate around 25,000 people, giving the Visayas another large-scale venue for concerts, performances, and major entertainment events.

Beyond giving fans more places to see their favorite artists, venues like this can also create another reason for people to travel, stay, eat, and explore around the area. Basically: concert trip and mall trip in one.

3. Your sporty era can happen at the mall too

If your ideal weekend involves moving more than shopping bags around, SM has been expanding its active lifestyle spaces as well. More than 40,000 runners joined the Galaxy Manila Marathon and SM2SM Cebu events this year.

Then there’s pickleball. The sport has quickly become one of the biggest recreational trends around, and there are now 102 pickleball courts across 32 SM malls nationwide.

These spaces matter beyond fitness too. Recreational sports give people a reason to meet regularly, form communities, and spend time together without needing a formal occasion. Meaning your next “tara, SM?” could technically end with a racket in your hand.

4. Art and culture are becoming part of the regular mall itinerary

You don’t necessarily need to plan an entire museum day to squeeze a little culture into your weekend. Through projects including Museo del Galeon, Art for Everyone, and AweSM Festivals, SM has been integrating more art, heritage, and cultural programming into its destinations.

That accessibility is part of what makes third spaces important in the first place. People can encounter something new simply because it happens to exist within the spaces they already spend time in.

Consider it a productive side quest.

5. SM wants every niche, fandom, and community to find its corner

One of the more interesting shifts is the move away from treating every shopper exactly the same. Through My SM, the company is building experiences around different communities and interests, including fandoms, furparents, geeks, and active-lifestyle groups.

Campaigns such as Gala to the Max also play into the idea that malls can become spaces for interactive experiences rather than simply places where people buy things.

And the brands inside are changing along with them.

SM's tenant footprint grew by 4% during the first half of 2026, bringing its nationwide roster to more than 23,000 tenants. “Food, leisure, and lifestyle concepts are leading the demand right now,” said Hanna Carinna T. Sy, Senior Assistant Vice President for Marketing and Leasing at SM Supermalls. “We’re actively curating a mix that keeps shoppers staying longer, discovering new brands, and coming back more often.”

6. Even creators now have their own SM community

Here’s one for your creator side quest.

SM has also launched SM SuperMakers, an always-on TikTok creator community through @OfficialSupermakers.

Creators can participate by making SM-related content, posting it on TikTok, and collaborating with the SuperMakers account. Members can also potentially access creator perks, exclusive SM experiences, features, community events, rewards, and opportunities to join future campaigns and briefs.

So if you were already filming your coffee runs, food finds, shopping hauls, concerts, or random mall discoveries anyway, there’s now an actual community built around it.

Why third spaces matter more than ever

What makes these developments interesting isn’t just that there are more things to do at the mall, but that people increasingly need accessible spaces beyond home and work where they can gather, unwind, and simply spend time. In cities where space can be limited, malls often fill that role, giving people somewhere to meet friends, stay active, attend events, discover new interests, and connect with communities.

Shopping is still part of the experience, but SM’s latest moves point to something broader: creating spaces where people can actually do things and stay longer. Alongside this, SM continues to support around 900 small businesses daily, has hosted trade fairs for nearly 3,000 local entrepreneurs, and runs sustainability initiatives such as nationwide plastic collection and solar power integration.

Maybe that is why the Filipino mall continues to hold such a particular place in everyday life. It isn’t quite home. It isn’t work. But for many people, it is where life happens in between.