Traditional shophouse VS modern residential, how to be compatible and innovative?

Shophouse is a traditional property type common in Southeast Asia. It is very popular in Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia and other country, its functional design of " living above store" can meet people's needs of residence and commercial, which is favorite by many people. 

With the continuous development of modern architectural design, high-rise buildings and modern shops are being built in the core locations of cities, gradually replacing shophouses. Therefore, in many Southeast Asian cities, shophouse can only be seen in some old-style architectures.

However, in Cambodia, the architectural of shophouses has been constantly iterating with changes in living needs, becoming an important part of the Cambodian real estate. 

So, how do Cambodian shophouses meet the needs of modern living and continue to innovate? OCIC gave the answer!

‖ Keeping pace with the times, shophouses are constantly upgraded

First of all, looking back at the development of Cambodia, in addition to the native people, it is also closely related to French and Chinese immigrants, which is reflected in the architectural style.

Influenced by early Chinese immigrants, who incorporated the living habits and needs of their country into the architectural structure of the shophouses. Early shophouses were narrow, usually two stories high, and had simple exterior designs, later, influenced by French architects, the "Art Deco" style started to appear on the shophouse architecture, and its appearance has also been improved.

After independence from France in 1953, the population surged, and shophouses also changed from two floors to many floors. and were divided into multiple units for multi-family living, which similar to the apartment buildings. At the same time, the "New Khmer Architecture" style led by Cambodian architect Vann Molyvann was highly praised.

 After 1980, the wealthier began to re-incorporate elements of the "neoclassical" architectural style into their shophouses, and the ground floors began to be transformed into dedicated residential living spaces. 

Around 2010, Cambodia's economy grows rapidly, and Borey communities began to emerged, shophouses were usually built on the outer of the Borey, and modern shophouses have appeared since then.

Although shophouses are constantly changing to adapt to the needs of people’s living, there are still some shortcomings. In order to provide people with a better living and business environment, the Elite Town III developed by OCIC has pushed modern shophouses to a new level.

‖ Traditional shophouse VS Elite Town III

Due to the short frontage of traditional shophouses, there are not enough parking spaces to accommodate private cars/motorcycles, which not only affects daily life, but also causes inconvenience to business. Therefore, people often park their vehicles in the living areas in front of their homes or adjacent to the street, which will takes up the public space and disrupts the public sidewalks/driveways.

In order to solve the parking problem, each shophouse in Elite Town III has a private underground parking space with an area of about 96sqm, to give sufficient space for vehicles parking.

In addition, the front area of the Elite Town’s shophouses are also wider, which can also meet the temporary parking needs of some businesses.

The traditional shophouse’s ground floor has a small operating area and low space utilization. In order to solve the problem, Elite Town III has increased the height of the first floor to 5.5 meters, which can be used as a mezzanine to double the space.

The indoor space functions of traditional shophouses are unevenly distributed. There is generally no leisure area for children, because the indoor space has to fully meets the needs of the family, which results in children playing on the narrow and dangerous streets.

Each shophouse in Elite Town III is 5.5 stories high, it canl fully meet the functions of living, open business, office, leisure...giving families more space. It is also equipped with a private elevator, making daily travel more convenient.

In addition, the Elite Town project is a  high-end residential project in Phnom Penh, and only the product of third phase currently on sale is a shophouse project. The entire shophouse community is a Western-style building, with macaron green walls and sapphire blue roofs, which is fresh, comfortable and exotic. It complements the literary and artistic atmosphere of Koh Pich and is also one of the popular visit places.

‖ Phnom Penh CBD, residential and commercial area

Since shophouse have both residential and commercial attributes, the requirements for the location are higher, so that prosperity and comfort can be captured at the same time.

Elite Town III is located in the prime location of Koh Pich, all kinds of top urban resources are gathered here, making it the best location for shophouse products.

In terms of business environment, Elite Town III is located at the CBD of Phnom Penh, with office buildings, high-end hotels, convention and exhibition center, wedding halls, Koh Pich Theater, and the upcoming Connexion community Hub.  At the same time, it is also adjacent to AEON 1, Naga World, etc.,, expanding range of Koh Pich commercial Center.

Elite Town III surrounded by many large communities, international schools, government institutions, etc., therefore, it has a a huge flow of people, and high-quality consumer group, which can bring a lot of potential business opportunities, the continuously upgraded of infrastructure will also promote consumption level in the region. For example, the construction of Koh Pich-Koh Norea bridge is about to be completed. By then, the consumer groups in the east of Phnom Penh will be more closely connected with Koh Pich, which will also bring more business opportunities.

In terms of living environment, Elite Town III can bring a modern and comfortable living experience. In addition, Coconut Park, Treellion Park, DIB Club, riverwalk place, etc. adjacent to the project are all good places for leisure, entertainment, and sweet family time, and the supporting facilities such as restaurants, schools, and hospitals also improves the convenience of living here.

In conclusion, shophouses are highly optimistic about their future prospects due to their unique historical and cultural value, commercial value, and high investment returns rate, and The Elite Town III is a good investment choice for investors to maintain capital and increase value as Cambodian shophouse products. Interested investors  can learn more about its location and business environment, conduct risk and return assessments, and make your investment strategies and plans.