An artist's conception of Terminal 21 Korat in Nakhon Ratchasima province. The new mall is scheduled to open this year. Photo courtesy of Ogilvy Thailand

Siam Retail Development Co, the group behind Terminal 21 shopping mall, has revised its investment strategy with a plan to build a 6-billion-baht lifestyle mall in Pattaya this year.

The Pattaya complex will replace the project in Nakhon Si Thammarat that was planned earlier.

President Prasert Sriuranpong said his company was shifting its investment to Pattaya because it was one of three main destinations in Thailand along with Phuket and Chiang Mai.

"Pattaya is full of foreign tourists, and the number of arrivals will continue to increase in the coming years," he said.

"Our lifestyle shopping mall will take about two years to complete."

In addition, the company plans to open a Terminal 21 mall in Nakhon Ratchasima province this year. Construction of Terminal 21 Korat is 90% complete.

Terminal 21 Korat is located on 32 rai on the Mitrapap Highway.

It is being developed under the "Market Street" concept, with themed shopping based on seven world-renowned cities and a sightseeing tower as high as 30 storeys.

The 6-billion-baht Terminal 21 Korat offers 200,000 square metres of retail space, almost triple the size of Terminal 21 Asok, which has 70,000 sq m.

Some 75% of retail space in Terminal 21 Korat has been reserved by tenants.

Anchor tenants include SF Cinema City, The Rink Ice Arena, Fanpekka theme park and Foodland Supermarket.

Shops will offer 200 local and international brands.

To celebrate the launch of Terminal 21 Korat by year-end, Siam Retail plans to spend 100 million baht on marketing activities to promote the new mall.

"We're confident Terminal 21 Korat will be the talk of the town just as Terminal 21 Asok was in recent years," Mr Prasert said.

Nakhon Ratchasima is considered a gateway to the Northeast, with strong economic growth potential and a population of 2.6 million.

The province's urban consumers are similar to Bangkokians in terms of purchasing power, shopping behaviour and lifestyle.

The province has more than 50,000 university students, the third most in the Northeast after Khon Kaen and Maha Sarakham.

Moreover, it is a top tourist destination in the region, with more than 5 million visitors each year.

Continued development of transport infrastructure in Nakhon Ratchasima will accommodate regional integration, making the province a significant economic hub.

Siam Retail recorded revenue of 3.5 billion baht last year, up by 9% from 2014 despite the economic slowdown.

More than half the revenue came from Fashion Island, 25% from Terminal 21 Asok and the rest from The Promenade and Life Center.

This year, the company expects revenue growth of almost 5% to 3.67 billion baht.