(Yicai Global) Oct. 9 -- Chinese department store giant Wangfujing Group Co. [SHA:600859] has opened its first shopping mall in the city of Harbin in China's northern Heilongjiang province after two years of construction and preparation, the company said in a press briefing today.

The new mall, covering a total area of 149,000 square meters, will be the company's first to provide a personalized shopping experience for local consumers.

Some 232 brands will open stores at the location, and the mall could become a landmark in the city, said Du Baoxiang, president of Wangfujing Group.

Wangfujing is headquartered on Beijing's Wangfujing Street, a century-old famous commercial road in the capital. The firm's first department store opened in 1955 and it now operates 22 department stores in 15 cities around the country.