39 new malls are scheduled to open within this year, ushering in a massive boom of the commercial sector in Jiangsu!
According to incomplete statistics from Winshang, in 2026, Jiangsu will also see 39 new projects open in a concentrated manner, with an estimated new commercial volume of about 2.5116 million ㎡. These projects are highly concentrated in core cities such as Nanjing and Suzhou. At the same time, a large number of community businesses, characteristic blocks, outlet malls and urban renewal projects have emerged, reflecting the in-depth transformation of Jiangsu's business from incremental expansion to stock activation.
01.
Nanjing and Suzhou Lead as Dual Core Engines
No New Projects Launched in Yangzhou
In terms of urban distribution, these 39 projects cover 12 cities in Jiangsu, but are highly concentrated in top-tier cities. Nanjing takes the lead with 13 projects, followed by Suzhou with 8 projects, and the two together account for more than half of the total; Wuxi ranks third with 5 projects. Among the remaining cities, Changzhou, Xuzhou, Nantong and Taizhou each have 2 projects, and Yancheng, Huai'an, Zhenjiang, Suqian and Lianyungang each have 1 project.
As the two cities with the most concentrated commercial resources in Jiangsu, Nanjing and Suzhou take the lead in new supply, but their project characteristics are different: the projects in Nanjing are more diverse, including large-scale projects such as China World Trade Center Center, Deji Moment and Zhimei Tiandi, as well as a large number of small and medium-sized projects distributed in various regions;
while the new projects in Suzhou are obviously small-scale and refined, most of which are community-level commercial facilities of about 30,000 ㎡, indicating that Suzhou's commercial market has entered a stage of in-depth stock competition and renewal.
02.
Projects of 50,000-100,000 ㎡ Dominate the Market
Polarization in Volume Distribution
From the perspective of volume interval distribution, the 39 projects present a clear stepped structure.
■ Projects of 50,000-100,000 ㎡ (including 50,000 ㎡) are the most numerous, totaling 17, accounting for more than 40% of the total, which is the absolute main force of supply. Such projects are usually positioned as regional commercial centers, which can not only meet the daily consumption needs of surrounding residents, but also have certain brand gathering and radiation capabilities. Examples include Nanjing Xinghe COCOCity, Nanjing Youhu Bay Shopping Park, Suzhou Yuanrong Constellation, Huai'an Chengnan MixC, etc.
■ There are 10 projects of 30,000-50,000 ㎡ (including 30,000 ㎡), ranking second. Such projects have a moderate volume, which can not only carry a relatively complete business combination, but also have high operational flexibility and implementation efficiency, and mostly appear in the form of neighborhood centers and small commercial complexes.
■ There are 5 small projects below 30,000 ㎡ in total, including Suzhou Xuanqiao IN Alley, Changzhou Hang 5 Cultural and Creative Block, Xuzhou Jiuli Chu-Han Cultural and Creative Block, Wuxi Jiangyin Cangjian 1952, most of which are presented in the form of open blocks or cultural and creative parks, cutting into the segmented market through exquisite scenes and vertical positioning.
■ In terms of large-scale projects, there are 4 projects of 100,000-150,000 ㎡ (including 100,000 ㎡), namely Nanjing Deji Moment, Nanjing Halo Garden City, Nanjing Zhimei Tiandi, Wuxi Shanshan Outlet Plaza; there are 3 super-large projects of 150,000 ㎡ and above, namely Jiangyin China Railway Construction Plaza, Nanjing China World Trade Center Center and Xuzhou Deji Plaza. These 7 large and super-large projects occupy a significant share of the total volume, most of which undertake the function of city-level commercial centers, with high business complexity, emphasizing experience sense and destination attributes.
03.
Characteristic Business Forms Rise Rapidly
Block Commerce and Outlets Enter the Market in a Concentrated Manner
Among the projects under preparation in 2026, block-style and open commercial forms have increased significantly. Projects such as Nanjing Granary π Digital Cultural Tourism Industrial Park and Xuzhou Jiuli Chu-Han Cultural and Creative Block mostly build differentiated experiences by embedding cultural IP or creating characteristic scenes. Among them, Nanjing Granary π Digital Cultural Tourism Industrial Park is a particularly typical example — the project was formerly a national grain reserve warehouse built in 1982, with 24 distinctive old granary buildings of different shapes standing in the park. It plans to explore the urban renewal paradigm of deep integration of "industry + commerce + life" around industrial office, sports experience and commercial supporting facilities.
Outlets are also an important highlight of the projects scheduled to open in 2026. The concentrated launch of Nanjing Deji Art Outlet, positioned as "the first art concept outlet in China" and Wuxi Shanshan Outlet Plaza reflects the strong demand of consumers for cost-effective brands and micro-vacation experiences.
It is foreseeable that Jiangsu's commerce has entered a meticulous era that tests market insight, content creativity and long-term operation capabilities. In core cities such as Nanjing and Suzhou, commercial competition has entered a white-hot stage. New projects must present sufficiently differentiated solutions in positioning, scenarios and operations; in cities with relatively weak commercial foundations such as northern Jiangsu, the launch of new projects is expected to fill regional gaps and activate local consumption.
Regardless of the urban development level, community orientation, characteristic orientation and experience orientation have become the industry consensus, and the extensive mode that purely relies on scale expansion is being replaced by more refined operation logic. The future commercial market of Jiangsu is destined to be wonderful and fierce.
(The following project information is sorted in no particular order)
Nanjing Deji Art Outlet
Estimated opening time: 2026
As an important new project in Deji's commercial layout, Deji Art Outlet will be located in Xianlin, Nanjing. With a brand-new commercial concept and spatial expression, it will explore the development path of deep integration of art, commerce, nature and urban life, and is committed to building an urban lifestyle destination integrating quality consumption, cultural experience and leisure social interaction, injecting new vitality into the construction of Nanjing as an international consumption center city.
Xianlin has superior ecological resources, a strong humanistic atmosphere and continuous regional development potential, and is an important gathering area of innovative resources and young talents in eastern Nanjing. The project is located in the core area of Xianlin University Town, adjacent to the ecological green vein of Yangshan Lake, with rich natural landscape resources, surrounded by universities and active young consumer groups, with both ecological advantages and innovative vitality. The good regional endowment is highly consistent with the artistic, aesthetic and quality life concepts advocated by Deji, and also provides a solid foundation for building a new type of commercial space with both consumption attraction and public service functions.
Different from the traditional operation mode of outlets that focuses on brand discounts and shopping consumption, Deji Art Outlet pays more attention to the value of consumption experience and urban public space, and hopes to build an open lifestyle block integrating art, aesthetics, nature and commerce, making commercial space an important carrier for citizens to relax, socialize and experience culture.
The overall design of the project takes "urban art sculpture" as the core concept. On the basis of fully respecting the original building structure, it reshapes the space experience through artistic design language, and organically integrates architecture, landscape and commerce. Open blocks, garden landscapes, lakeside trails and public rest spaces are connected in series, forming a more comfortable and open interactive relationship between people and nature, and between people and the city. During the day, the architecture and natural landscape together create a pure and comfortable artistic atmosphere; at night, the space presents different visual experiences through lighting and light and shadow scenes, shaping an urban public space with both a sense of quality and vitality.
In the future, Deji Art Outlet will be based in Xianlin and serve Nanjing, adhere to empowering urban development with innovative business models, enrich urban connotation with artistic aesthetics, link consumption and culture with lifestyle, strive to build "a new consumption center in eastern Nanjing, a new scene for young people's life, and a new landmark for the integration of culture, commerce and tourism", continuously improve the regional commercial level and urban influence, and contribute new strength to Nanjing's construction of an international consumption center city.
Source: Official project release
Nanjing Youhu Bay Shopping Park
Estimated opening time: September 26, 2026
Youhu Bay Shopping Park is located in the Shangqinhu area of Jiangning, next to Moluzhou East Station of Metro Line 3, with a total construction area of more than 120,000 ㎡ and a commercial area of more than 70,000 ㎡, equipped with more than 3,500 underground parking spaces. It enjoys unique traffic advantages, close to Nanjing South Railway Station and Nanjing Lukou International Airport, surrounded by multiple traffic trunk lines such as Metro Line 3, Line S1, Nanjing-Hangzhou Expressway and Airport Expressway, which can quickly connect the whole city.
The project takes "fun, delicious and good to visit" as its core positioning, and upholds the three concepts of "natural beauty, animal beauty and life beauty". The negative first floor introduces nearly 3,000 ㎡ of Freshippo, the first floor is for fashion retail and trendy digital products, the second floor is for trendy clothing and bookstores, the third floor is for parent-child interaction space, the fourth floor is for characteristic catering, and the fifth floor is for leisure and entertainment experience. The brand lineup is full of sincerity: Freshippo (regional first store), Kidswant (regional first store), Little Silver Star Art Troupe (regional first store), Shangdao Sports Center (Nanjing Flagship Store), Cheery - Fly Space (East China first store), Cheery - Moe Planet (East China first store), Youyou Time Billiards (Nanjing first store), Xingjuhui (regional first store), Ludao Membership Store (Nanjing's first tea shop), Hamazushi (regional first store), Jiangnan Xiaocai (regional first store) and other brands have officially settled in.
Based in Jiangning District, which ranks among the top 10 top 100 districts in China, Youhu Bay deeply focuses on more than 200,000 high-level talents and more than 300,000 ordinary people in the region, relies on a 100-billion-level industrial cluster of more than 4,000 high-tech enterprises and more than 50 listed companies, and is committed to building a quality life center serving high-quality business people. After completion, it will form the core of the Shangqinhu business district together with Sasseur Outlet, undertake the consumption of future talents, serve the regional life, and set a new benchmark for urban commerce.
Nanjing China World Trade Center Center
Estimated opening time: 2026
Nanjing China World Trade Center Center is located on the "golden central axis" of the city, Central Road, between Xuanwu Lake and the Ming City Wall, at the core of the century-old Hunan Road business district, which is a city-level high-end complex. The total construction area is about 450,000 ㎡, covering composite formats such as super Grade A office buildings, boutique shopping centers, block commerce, China World Trade Center International Apartments, China World Trade Center Ascott Service Apartments, and the former site of the Central Bank Plaza.
Adhering to the group's development concept of "being responsible to the city, to the society and to history", through "integration of culture, commerce and tourism + full-format immersive experience + spiritual content co-creation", Nanjing China World Trade Center Center is becoming a link to the city's cultural context and reshaping the appearance of the Central Road-Xuanwu Lake business district.
The total commercial volume of Nanjing China World Trade Center Center reaches 126,000 ㎡, which is composed of China World Trade Center Center Mall (about 108,000 ㎡) and China World Trade Center Center Block (18,000 ㎡), creating a new generation of Nanjing composite commercial landmark of "content first × space curation × lifestyle operation". Inspired by Xuanwu Lake, the project is positioned as "a pleasant place for lakeside life in the new metropolis". Through the integration of sports, art, social interaction and aesthetics, it jointly builds a new sample of metropolitan life with warmth, content and expressiveness.
Nanjing Jifang PARK
Estimated opening time: Q4 2026
Nanjing Jifang PARK is the first truly one-stop life center in the south of Jiangning Fangshan area. The project has a total construction area of 85,000 square meters and a commercial area of 45,000 square meters, and is scheduled to officially open in the second half of 2026.
The project takes "live with rules, enjoy unlimited freedom" as its slogan. In terms of business planning, the project integrates multiple formats such as fresh supermarket, quality cinema, children's amusement and characteristic catering: B1 meets high-frequency life needs with fresh supermarkets and food markets; 1-2F gathers trendy retail, coffee baking and pet spaces to enhance consumption experience; 3F focuses on parent-child families to create a leisure destination; 4-6F focuses on high-experience formats such as characteristic catering, theme cinema, fitness and garden tea houses to enrich nightlife and weekend life.
In terms of spatial design, the project introduces 3D naked-eye large screens, large-area glass curtain walls and suspended trails to break the closed sense of traditional commercial buildings, realizing the penetration and integration with the natural landscape of Fangshan. In the future, emerging formats such as cultural and creative experience, secret salons, terrace culture and curatorial exchanges will also be planned, so that the commercial space can be upgraded to a public living hall accessible and restable for residents.
Nanjing Hechang · Hongshan Tiandi
Estimated opening time: end of 2026
Nanjing Hechang · Hongshan Tiandi is close to the south gate of Hongshan Forest Zoo, with a commercial area of about 32,000 square meters, separated from the zoo by only one wall, supported by top-level cultural tourism IP, gathering a large number of tourists and parent-child passenger flow, and radiating the stable passenger flow of mature communities around the Tiebei Hongshan New City and 3 new city industrial parks. The negative first floor parking lot can directly lead to Nanjing Railway Station and the south gate of the zoo, realizing the efficient linkage of transportation, cultural tourism and commerce.
After years of preparation and upgrading, the project plans multiple formats such as trendy play retail and scene catering, builds an immersive and experiential cultural tourism consumption scene around cultural tourism and communities with animal themes, and becomes an urban micro-vacation destination. At the same time, with unique ecological landscape, pet-friendly facilities, building a green and vibrant space, matching with multiple formats, it forms a new landmark of urban inspired life.
