The Thai retail giant has unveiled NEXTOPIA at Siam Paragon, positioning the 15,000-square-metre project as the world’s first prototype for a global sustainability platform embedded within a retail environment.

The launch comes as shopping mall operators across Asia-Pacific face mounting pressure to reinvent physical retail beyond consumption alone. 

NEXTOPIA was formally introduced during The Economist Sustainability Week Asia, where Siam Piwat Chief Executive Officer Chadatip Chutrakul framed the initiative as a long-term business transformation rather than a corporate social responsibility exercise.

“Sustainability is no longer optional,” Chutrakul said. “We must accelerate and make a bold move. Real, lasting impact is never created alone. It requires co-creation across industries, united by purpose, in a place that captures the world’s attention and inspires change for the greater good.”

Opened in November 2025, NEXTOPIA sits inside Siam Paragon, one of Thailand’s highest-traffic retail destinations, which attracts more than 200,000 visitors daily, including large volumes of international tourists and regional luxury shoppers.

Rather than functioning as a standalone green showcase, the project attempts to integrate sustainability directly into the retail journey itself. 

Interactive installations allow visitors to generate electricity through kinetic flooring and bicycles, while recycled art exhibitions and environmentally-focused retail concepts are positioned alongside conventional shopping experiences.

At the centre of the development is ECOTOPIA, described by the company as Thailand’s largest eco-focused retail store, carrying more than 110,000 sustainable products sourced from roughly 300 Thai communities and small businesses.

The project was developed alongside more than 50 corporate and institutional partners, including B.Grimm, SCG, Indorama Ventures, and Kasikornbank. 

Global organisations including the World Wide Fund for Nature, World Food Programme, and United Nations Development Programme also participated in collaborative programming.

Siam Piwat said the site has already achieved zero waste to landfill while cutting energy consumption by 47%, reducing water usage by 34%, and lowering carbon emissions from construction materials by 59%.

The building has received EDGE Advanced certification and a two-star Fitwel rating, alongside the Best in Building Health Award 2026 from Fitwel.

Importantly, the sustainability framework extends to tenants themselves. Businesses operating within NEXTOPIA are required to comply with roughly 50 sustainability standards covering waste management, sourcing, and operational practices—a sign of how landlords across the region are beginning to push environmental requirements deeper into commercial ecosystems.

For Siam Piwat, NEXTOPIA is intended as both a showcase and exportable model.

The company said the platform is designed to function as a “living laboratory” that other retail and real estate operators globally could adapt as pressure intensifies on brands and property groups to demonstrate measurable sustainability action under evolving climate commitments.

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Ecotopia is an eco-product store, while Absolute Siam is a fashion and lifestyle store. Meanwhile, ICONCRAFT sells contemporary art and craft items. Siam Piwat said that said brands showcase the height of contemporary and traditional Thainess intertwined together to produce one-of-a kind offerings. The stores have been opened at Pavilion Bukit Jalil, a new forefront project in Malaysia under cooperation with Pavilion Group.

Usara Yongpiyakul, CEO of the retail business group of Siam Piwat, shared that while many industries may have stumbled or may have been disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic, Thai brands are still gaining attention from different countries where the group have continuously been receiving inquiries about selling abroad. 

“Partnering with Pavilion Group, owner and executive of high-end shopping centres in Malaysia, bringing the identity of everything about Thai by using innovative, contemporary but yet retaining the originality of crafts to be shared with a wider group of customers. I know this will only lead us, the retailers to offer cutting-edge plus multi-cultural shopping experience. This is in line with Siam Piwat’s vision of making a difference through creating a sense of wonder, extraordinary and unprecedented experiences,” said Yongpiyakul. 

The stores are designed with different art features and installations located at the entrance and different areas, generating unique and fascinating ambience to bring awe and ‘wonders’ to Malaysian shoppers.

For Ecotopia, it commissioned one of its long-supporting artists to create an art installation called ‘Siam Yak’ which was constructed using discarded and recycled plastic parts and other materials, reflecting the core value of Ecotopia. 

For ICONCRAFT, meanwhile, it had its space designed and decorated by Khun Suwan Kongkhunthian, the owner of the Thai furniture brand YOTHAKA, who seamlessly combines handicrafts with design. For Absolute Siam, it brought in the well-known ‘Tuk-tuk’ from Thailand to serve as the landmark of the area with some of the innovative Thai fashion brands, such as Mahanakhon, TA.THA.TA, and CORALIST. 

Yongpiyakul further shared that this is just the first step of a plan to promote and support the talent of Thai entrepreneurs and designers in the wider international market. 

“By the end of this year, we expect to explore different distribution channels for Thai brands through Siam Piwat’s global business partners to at least 12 countries, all of which are in the discussion process. We believe that this will be another important stage that will build and support local heroes becoming real global heroes, and for Siam Piwat to be successfully expanding into international markets,” added Yongpiyakul. 

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