From The Topp to Lifestyle RoofTop at Toppen

In April 2018, I was at the event that announced the building of the Toppen Shopping Center, the mall linked to the first IKEA store outside the Klang Valley.

The ground-breaking for the multi-storey car
park with the Lifestyle RoofTop on top

In June 2019, I had the privilege to witness the Handing-Over of Keys to representatives of Brands that will open in Toppen as tenants and had a first peek at the progress of the building that was fast taking shape next to IKEA Tebrau.

Just as announced, Toppen was officially opened on 13 November 2019, and I had fun witnessing the event that kicked off an itinerary of day-long celebratory activities.

This April, I was at Toppen again for yet another announcement and a sneak peek at the construction site of the multi-storey Lifestyle RoofTop, which started in early April 2021 and is expected to be completed by Q3 of 2022.

A sneak peek at construction in progress

Staying on track with the shopping centre’s vision to enhance a seamless customer experience, Toppen will build a Lifestyle RoofTopp on top of a nine-storey structure adjacent to the existing building, with an exciting retail mix at the top two floors.

The Lifestyle RoofTopp will offer 617,000 sq ft of car park space with about 1,600 parking bays with convenient links for easy access to Toppen, IKEA Tebrau and the surrounding areas.

As Toppen and its anchor tenant, IKEA Tebrau continue to provide visitors with a safe and accessible meeting place in its one-stop shopping destination, The Topp, the rooftop space at the top of Toppen Shopping Centre, has been a popular space for people of all ages to enjoy the various activities organised here.

An artist's impression of the facade of the
multi-storey car park with Lifestyle RoofTopp

More car parking bays will help to accommodate the high volume of visitors who are going to Toppen to shop and dine, or enjoy fun activities at The Topp like wall-climbing and a splashing good time with the kids at the splash park.

Toppen has also adapted to the concept of physical distancing by developing a multi-storey car park with a Lifestyle RoofTopp to further distribute visitors and allow tenants to create their own attractions within the variety of large spaces provided.

A similar retailtainment concept will be developed in the Lifestyle RoofTopp with retail spaces that will offer Food and Beverage, entertainment, health and fitness as well as co-working spaces.

An artist's impression of the retailtainment
space at the Lifestyle RoofTopp

The mood was upbeat at the event as Adrian Mirea, Shopping Centre and Mixed-Used Director, IKEA Southeast Asia and Arnoud Bakker, Head of Leasing IKEA Southeast Asia, emphasized that the development of the Lifestyle RoofTopp is a testament of their dedication to growing Toppen. 

Following the successful launch of Toppen in November 2019, the retail market underwent significant challenges due to the global pandemic.

As they worked closely with tenants to ensure their success, Toppen remained resilient throughout this difficult time.

“As restrictions eased, we were inspired by the eagerness of the Johor community as they returned to our center. 

Multi-storey car park launch gambit: [L to R]
Adrian Mirea, Vasilisa Kuznetsova
and Arnoud Bakker

With the increasing number of Toppen and IKEA visitors per year, the plan was to create a better experience for our visitors coming from near and afar,” said Mirea.

“Now, more than ever, we know how important it is to encourage community-building and create a better everyday life for the many people visiting our meeting places.

We rearrange our spaces according to what the community needs, and co-create events and unique experiences for them to enjoy.

This cannot be done without the tenants who have been fully supportive of us since the beginning.

This is just one of the many ways to improve ourselves as we continue to make Toppen the heart and hub of the Johor Baru community,” he added.

One for the album: The team at Toppen

After their plans to build a new 86-metre elevated pedestrian bridge to link Toppen and neighbouring AEON Tebrau, were unveiled last October, this bridge has since been completed to facilitate safe and convenient access for visitors between both buildings.

“Ease of accessibility on foot and vehicle traffic via the surrounding infrastructure is key to us as each touchpoint is designed to meet the needs of our communities,” said Vasilisa Kuznetsova, Centre Manager of Toppen Shopping Centre.

During the month of Ramadan, visitors of Toppen will be able to enjoy Iftar at The Topp where they can break their fast at the space provided while enjoying movies and special performances on the stage.

Toppen has even provided foldable floor mats for families and friends to spread on the ground for a traditional breaking-of-fast time together at The Topp. Visitors can also take part in other initiatives like the free weekly Zumba classes.

From The Topp to the Lifestyle Rooftop, now we have something exciting to look forward to at Toppen, very soon.

Toppen Shopping Centre is located at No. 33 Jalan Harmonium, Taman Desa Tebrau, 81100 Johor Baru. Opening hours from 10am to 10pm daily.