NEARLY two months after its official launch, Changi Airport's Terminal 3 (T3) has blossomed into a popular suburban hot spot among mall-crazy Singaporeans.

Cash registers have been ringing non-stop at eateries and the NTUC FairPrice supermarket.

Outlet manager Rose Yang of Crystal Jade Shanghai said the restaurant sees 800 customers a day on weekdays and over 1,000 a day on weekends. In fact, business is so good there and at other eateries that they are reporting comparable traffic and daily takings to their other branches.

At Chinese restaurant Dian Xiao Er, for instance, daily takings range from $10,000 to $20,000 - almost as strong as some of its branches in malls such as Marina Square and VivoCity.

T3 boasts 100 shops and 40 food and beverage outlets, nearly half of which are in the public access area and spread out over five levels.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore, which manages Changi Airport, said it does not keep track of customer traffic. But staff at shops say about a third of customers are locals just there to shop and eat, and most are families.

T3's lure has affected the other terminals.

Sports shop Outdoors said January takings at its T2 outlet dropped by 50 per cent, while the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf outlet there saw 20 per cent less customer traffic in the same period.

The T3 phenomenon is unprecedented.

While T1 and T2 attracted some attention when they opened in 1981 and 1991, respectively, T3 is attracting more interest because it provides wider retail and F&B choices, said Mr Danny Yeo, director of retail with Knight Frank.

T3 also has 10 per cent more commercial space in the public area than that of the other two terminals combined.

Another factor is its positioning: At T1 and T2, stores and cafes are viewed as amenities for travellers. T3, however, has been positioned as Changi Airport's mall, and has been widely advertised as a shopping and eating destination.

Mr Yeo also attributed T3's success to its ambience and novelty status as a new retail space.

However, not all T3 stores are runaway hits.

Health supplement store GNC, for instance, sees about 10 customers on a weekday, and 30 on a weekend, according to staff there.

Mr Yeo said this is because people visit the terminal as a family outing, rather than a shopping trip. But he said business will grow once passenger volume picks up. T3 was built to handle 22 million passengers a year, or roughly 60,000 a day. It is now handling about 25,000 passengers a day.

Later this month, thousands more will use T3 as China Eastern, Qatar Airways, Jet Airways and United Airlines join Singapore Airlines there. For now, though, T3 will continue to see as many casual visitors as travellers.

Bedok resident and housewife Tini Kamsini, 50, is one. Since T3 opened on Jan 9, she has visited it three times with her family to dine at the foodcourt and visit the supermarket. She said its spaciousness and lush landscaping set it apart.

'It looks more beautiful and feels very relaxed. You see lots of different people from different countries too,' Madam Tini added.

Additional reporting by Shuli Sudderuddin and Chen Meiyue