Unicentro: A Western-Style Mall in Laureles

Centro Comercial Unicentro is one of only two Western-style mall located in Laureles in Medellín, the other being Centro Comercial Viva at the other end of the community.

Unicentro is located close to the La 70 (Setenta) entertainment district and across the street from Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana (UPB).

The mall opened in November 1991, which was 19 years after Centro Comercial San Diego, the first mall in Medellín opened. Unicentro recently completed some remodeling that modernized the food court area.

I lived in the Fatima barrio in Laureles for three months a few years ago, in an apartment located only about a five-minute walk to Unicentro.

I shopped for groceries at the Exito located in the mall and frequently ate at some of the fast food/restaurant options found in the food court.

There are also Unicento malls located in Bogotá and Cali.

The Shops in Unicentro

The anchor tenants in Unicentro are Exito and Cine Colombia.

The mall has over 270 shops, which include stores selling clothes, shoes, home furnishings, mattresses, eye-care, jewelry and several other categories. The mall also has a few money exchange places.

Exito is a supermarket that also sells electronics, clothes, kitchen items and home furnishings similar to a Walmart in the United States. The Exito in Laureles has grocery prices that are somewhat lower than the prices found in Exito stores located in El Poblado.

Make sure to sign up for Exito Puntos (points). This is a frequent shopper program where you accumulate points that can be used to help purchase items on sale in the future. To sign up you just need an ID: cédula or passport.

The Exito in Unicentro mall is larger than the Exito found in Los Molinos mall, which is close to where I now live. I sometimes still shop at the Exito in Unicentro as it has a bigger selection than the Exito in Los Molinos.

Cine Colombia in Unicentro is a movie theater with five screens located on the third floor of the mall. Cine Colombia shows movies in Spanish as well as some in English with Spanish subtitles.

Cine Colombia is Colombia’s largest movie theater chain in Colombia with theaters in 11 cities. In Medellín, it has five locations located in Los Molinos, Oviedo, Santa Fé, Unicentro and Vizcaya.

Arturo Calle is a Colombian men’s clothing store that primarily sells men’s casual clothes. The store is popular and can be found in many malls throughout Colombia.

Arturo Calle also has stores located in Panama, Costa Rica and El Salvador.

The store frequently has some sales and I have bought a few shirts and some shoes on sale at Arturo Calle.

I haven’t seen many shops selling musical instruments in Medellín and Unicentro has the Musical Cedar shop, which sells many types of instruments.

Musical Cedar has several additional shops in Medellín as well as shops located in Bogotá, Cali and Pereira.

In addition to all the shops in Unicentro, the mall has two small casinos located on the third floor.

Food Options in Unicentro

Unicentro mall has a food court located on the second floor. The mall has a pretty big selection with over 30 fast food places and restaurants.

In the mall you will find several of the typical fast food places in Medellín including El Corral, Frisby, J&C Delicias, Kokoriko, Mimo’s, Qbano and Subway. The mall also has a few restaurants including Cazuelas De Mi Tierra, Crepes & Waffles and Il Forno.

Conclusions

Pro’s – It’s a nice mall with an Exito for groceries, a five-screen Cine Colombia movie theater, a convenient food court and over 270 shops. It is also the only mall located in Laureles, which is convenient to where some foreigners live.

Con’s – Since it is the only Western-style mall located in this section of Laureles, it can be busy, especially on weekends and during holidays.

My Verdict – Unless you live in one of the barrios nearby there really isn’t a reason to go, as there isn’t something unique at Unicentro that you can’t find in the other malls in Medellín.

How to Get There – It is located within walking distance from the Fatima Metroplús station (about an eight-minute walk). Every taxi driver also knows where it is. Several bus routes also go to Unicentro.