Panamá a Shopping Mecca
By Juan Abelardo Carles
Photos: Carlos Gómez
Shopping in Panama feels like Christmas Eve all year long, especially on the weekends in the major shopping areas and malls, where aisles are filled with shoppers loaded with packages. Competition between the malls is fierce, so musical performances, art exhibits, contests, and varied attractions complement the array of products and stores.
For example, you might encounter a Panamanian folkloric dance group as you walk down the more than one-mile long central aisle in Albrook Mall, the largest shopping mall in Latin America. Nadkyi Duque, the mall’s marketing director and president of the Panamanian Association of Shopping Centers (APACECOM is the Spanish acronym), explains why shopping in Panama is so attractive. “Our prices are lower than in Central and South America, and, in some cases, even lower than in Miami. And added to this is our sales tax, which is also the lowest in the region. Our prices are fixed to a very stable currency, the US dollar, and from almost all countries, nationals don’t need to apply for a visa to enter Panama. The advantages are obvious.”
There are twelve major shopping centers in the metropolitan area of the Panamanian capital and eleven more are being built. In an age of franchises, you might think that all these temples of consumerism offer the same products, but although there are stores that obviously install multiple chain outlets, each mall has its own small differences. In addition to the malls, there are other shopping areas that are worth visiting.
Albrook Mall
The hallmark of this mall is, of course, its size, which allows it to offer everything from discount shops to upscale boutiques, electronics, and souvenirs. Just five minutes from Panama City, Albrook Mall offers more than seven hundred businesses, including a supermarket, movie theaters, pharmacies, banks, beauty salons, and more than one hundred restaurants divided into three food courts. Among its amenities are a casino, a bowling alley, a videogame arcade, light shows, DJs, children’s games, a small train, and lots of fun.
It’s now common to see both nationals and tourists taking photos alongside the gigantic animals that serve as a reference for orientation in the endless corridors, particularly under the Tyrannosaurus Rex or in the clutches of King Kong. If it’s variety we’re talking about, in Albrook Mall you can find products of all categories: electronics, perfume, footwear, clothing, department stores, accessories, souvenirs, jewelry, watches, health, beauty, and much more. Experts recommend you dedicate two full days to the mall if you want to comb the area thoroughly and discover everything it has to offer.
www.albrookmall.com
El Dorado Mall
This is the country’s oldest shopping center and it is distinguished by having branches of some of the most traditional shops in Panama, as well as a range of Chinese and Indian shops, which can bring you a world of porcelain, silk, and rosewood furniture, or offer you the latest fads from the Far East. In fact, the Eastern trade has expanded out to the shops and avenues adjoining the mall. Recently, the shopping center completed a series of renovations and expansions in response to the competition. We suggest you begin your shopping tour with a delicious dim sum (Chinese breakfast) in one of the restaurants in the area.
Avenida Ricardo J. Alfaro
Soho Mall and Multiplaza
Both properties have been created as sanctuaries for luxury customers, and many of their walks and small plazas advertise the same names you would see on Fifth Avenue in New York, Avenue Montaigne in Paris, or the Via Monte Napoleone in Milan. Many sumptuous international brands have chosen Panama as the place to take their first steps in Latin America. Names such as Chanel, Tiffany, Ermenegildo Zegna, and Carolina Herrera have planted their flags here. In this regard, Marie-Laure Clos, Vice President of Public Relations for Chanel in Latin America, reveals “Panama is positioned well because of its strategic location and the organic connectivity it enjoys with the rest of Latin America, thanks to its airport, which functions as a hub between North and South America.
Today, that connectivity has multiplied and, with the arrival of other luxury brands, Panama has positioned itself as a shopping destination with a wide range of possibilities, including access to shopping experiences with the most renowned international luxury houses.” In fact, luxury firms from Latin American countries, such as Carmen Steffens (Brazil) and Pineda Covalín (México), see Panama as a strategic space for the internationalization of their products.
www.multiplaza.com and Soho Mall Panamá (on Facebook).
Los Pueblos, Metromall, Los Andes Mall y Westland Mall
If high prices scare you and you are looking for sales or brand name shoes at outrageously low prices, Los Pueblos, Metromall, Los Andes Mall, and Westland Mall are for you. Los Pueblos and Metromall are opposite each other on the same avenue (Vía Domingo Díaz). For this reason they could be part of the same shopping expedition. Westland Mall specializes in outlets, but you have to leave the city to get there, traveling toward the town of La Chorrera. Los Andes Mall has the advantage of being accessible by the city’s metro system.
www.metromallonline.com,
Los Pueblos Panamá (on Facebook),
www.losandesmallcom,
www.westlandmall.com.pa
Altaplaza Mall
La más reciente adición a la comunidad de malls de la ciudad lo constituye Altaplaza Mall, sobre la avenida Centenario, con una oferta variada y muchas actividades de entretenimiento para los clientes. Con un diseño novedoso, elegante y rodeado de naturaleza, su oferta de tiendas cubre segmentos de consumo medio y alto.
www.altaplazamall.com
Zona Libre and Casco Viejo
Alternately, the Colon Free Trade Zone still fulfills its role as a supplier of goods for the Caribbean Basin, and although its shops specialize in wholesale, there are some that sell retail. However, don’t expect to find the amenities here that you would find at a store or mall, and prepare to withstand the sun and rain.
www.cascoviejo.com
In Panama, shopping can take on a special flavor if you are looking for an experience that goes beyond shopping in a mall. To see an example, simply walk through the streets of the Casco Viejo, the colonial heart of the city, which has become a paradise for “hippie chic” items. Wedged among the colonial houses and historic monuments, are shops that sell popular art, indigenous crafts, handicrafts, antiques, and organic products, to mention a few of the possibilities. A bazaar that takes place on Sundays in the Plaza de la Independencia, in front of the Cathedral, can be the starting point for a day full of discoveries and out of the ordinary purchases. A visit to the Casco Viejo can be complemented by a stop at the Craft Market (Mercado de Artesanías) located just off of El Chorrillo, via Arnulfo Arias, towards Balboa.
Shopping and More
Some travel agencies specialize in combining shopping tours with visits to places of historical or natural interest. Enrique Pesántez, a tour operator, is one of them. “Panama has the advantage of being small and everything is nearby. Visitors can, for example, use the morning to see the colonial ruins of Portobelo and Chagres, on the Caribbean coast, or the Pacific beaches or the rainforest that surrounds Gamboa, north of the capital, and then stay for lunch and shopping in some of the city’s malls,” observes Pesántez
www.pesantez-tours.com.
It is clear that Panama is a great shopping destination. Airlines such as Copa Airlines work closely with the local tourism industry, offering interesting packages. In addition, the trade unions have decided that staring next year (2017), a local version of so-called Black Friday will be held on September 15. So if you are a skilled shopper, reserve this date and get ready to have a unique shopping experience in Latin America.
