Can Cartimar still revive the glory days?

These days, parking is hardly a problem at the Cartimar Shopping Center in Pasay City. The cars that come and go are few and far between, and most of them belong to tenants.

This, stall owners say, is one of the clear signs of how slow business has become in the country’s first ever shopping center.

"You’re guess is as good as ours," businessman Ramon Magtibay told The STAR when asked if Cartimar can still bring back the same kind of appeal they had on the shopping public over two decades ago.

Magtibay, who has been a Cartimar tenant for 10 years, said he would soon be closing one of his two stores. But business has been so bad that he still isn’t sure which business – the pet shop or the bicycle store – he would give up.

He said several other tenants have been forced to close shop in the past years.

Located between Cartimar and Taft Avenues, the shopping center had been the haven for the rich and the "sosyal." "Wealthy Makati City residents used to buy fresh fish at the Cartimar market," Magtibay recalled.

Cartimar, owned by the Oppen family, was the "Greenhills" of shopping addicts in the late ’70s and throughout ’80s. This was the place to go for PX goods, including rubber shoes, shirts, and jeans. It was the home of espadrilles and topsiders to the trendy lot.

But as huge malls were built in different parts of Metro Manila, Cartimar and its almost 1,000 stores and stalls soon found themselves abandoned by its clientele.

Today, it is also besieged with rental issues between management and some 200 tenants – a clear manifestation of a struggle off both lessor and lessee to survive in the hard times.

Store owners are protesting some of the new terms in the contract prepared by management, led by general manager Jaime Genota.

Tenants said that in addition to their regular electricity billing, the contract stipulates an additional 15-percent service charge for the maintenance and administration of electrical facilities.

They are also protesting a cash deposit equivalent to three months rent and advanced payment equivalent to two months rent. They also said management started to charge them for the space in front off their stores which they use as display areas.

Magtibay said he was forced to bring his bicycles inside his store to avoid the additional fee.

Store owners called the contract "unfair" and called on Genoa to resign.

"It’s fine if he wants to make changes in the contract, if he wants to charge us more. But the timing is not right. Business is so bad, we’re not earning anything. He should know that," said Mario Jimenez, owner of five pet shops in Cartimar.

Jimenez, Magtibay and other tenants said Genota did not even consult with them about the new payment scheme and additional charges. They were surprised when given new contracts to sign last year.

This has prompted tenants to organize themselves and protest against management, the first time in Cartimar’s 50-year history.

They said Genota padlocked several stores after tenants were unable to pay their rent just before New Year. Genota later allowed them to resume business.

Genota, who has been Cartimar’s general manager in the last three months, said in a phone interview that the tenants‘ reaction was "normal."

He said most of the protesting tenants are those who owe huge rental fees accumulated in the last two to three years.

"Even if these are hard times, they should still pay the rent," Genota said.

He said that unlike in malls where tenants are immediately ejected, Cartimar management has been lenient and even allows store owners to pay their back fees in installments.

Genota also clarified that the 15-percent service charge for the electricity was provided for under Energy Regulatory Board rules.

He said that in a dialogue with the tenants’ representatives, management agreed to a two-month deposit and one-month advance in rent instead.

Genota said that "sentimental attachment" is the only thing keeps Cartimar afloat. "This is where most tenants earned their first millions," he said. "It’s really difficult now, but this year, we want to revitalize Cartimar to help our tenants."

He admitted that Cartimar has been left behind in terms of development and upgrading but said plans for the shopping center’s improvement are now in place.

"We have a marketing program and we will be active in advertising so that Cartimar would be re-introduced to the public. We do want to bring back the glory days of Cartimar," he said.