Business

Thursday November 19, 2009

Malacca lures Lotus with heritage status


MALACCA: The historic city status as a Unesco World Heritage Site (WHS) has attracted a wide range of investors, including Lotus Corp Bhd that has invested RM3.5mil here to tap the lucrative service and tourism industry.

Chief executive officer Datuk R. Doraisingam Pillai said the company was playing its role to boost tourism here in line with the WHS status by providing better choices for avid locals and foreign moviegoers through its Lotus Five Star (LFS) cineplex.

“The opening of the cineplex here is also part of our company’s plan to expand our business as well as to provide patrons with the latest movies in the industry,” he told reporters after the opening of the RM3.5mil four-screen cineplex in Mahkota Parade yesterday.

Doraisingam (left) and LFS director Garuna Murthee at the launching of the LFS cineplex in Mahkota Parade.

The number of tourists to Malacca is expected to hit 7.4 million this year, generating some RM4bil in revenue.

Meanwhile, Doraisingam said the company was likely to add four normal screens and a 3D screen here by end of next year, depending on response.

Besides Malacca, LFS will soon be operating in Kampar, Ipoh, the Klang Valley, Kulim and Mentakab with the Kulim Cineplex scheduled for opening on Nov 27. Located on the second floor of Mahkota Parade, the cineplex can accommodate 645 patrons.

The cineplex is its seventh in the country. – By Chen Pelf Yeen

  • E-mail this story
  • Print this story