Duon Wayfinding targets 60 malls by year-end with indoor navigation platform
Duon Wayfinding aims to double its mall coverage to 60 locations across the Philippines by year-end, adding Ayala Malls and expanding beyond SM malls. The indoor navigation app, which has 50,000 monthly active users, is also developing restaurant and parking reservation features as malls add more en
DUON WAYFINDING aims to double its mall coverage to 60 locations by year-end as shopping centre operators expand entertainment, dining and lifestyle offerings that can be difficult for visitors to navigate. The indoor navigation platform currently offers maps for 30 malls, including several SM malls in Metro Manila, Cebu and Davao, and plans to add Ayala Malls locations.
“When we do our market check with consumers, one of the top reasons, features or capabilities that they look for inside the mall is really navigation,” Duon Wayfinding founder and Chief Executive Officer Gab Anton D. Angeles told BusinessWorld via Zoom. “We’re working towards getting 60 out by the end of the year, and that’s nationwide across all of their malls.”
Duon functions similarly to road-navigation apps, providing users with turn-by-turn directions, estimated walking distances and travel times inside malls. “It automatically detects where you are, and all you have to feed it is where you want to go,” Mr Angeles said. “When you’re walking along the corridors, the aisles, we’ll walk along with you and show you turn-by-turn, step-by-step directional guidance.”
The company is also developing restaurant and parking reservation features. “We’re working on a couple of new features together, like restaurant reservations and parking reservations, so that’s something that we will do towards the end of the year,” Mr Angeles said.
He said demand for indoor navigation is rising as malls evolve beyond traditional retail and dining destinations. “There are so many unique experiences that they’re pushing for,” he said. “There are so many engaging activities like billiard halls, ice skating, airsoft hubs and wall climbing. There are so many activities inside malls that people don’t know, so these are things that we want to promote and show people where to go.”
Beyond shopping centres, Duon plans to expand into hospitals, theme parks, museums and hotels. “Eventually, we’re branching out to where people don’t really go regularly, so they get lost more inside the hospital, and you want to get out as fast as you can,” Mr Angeles said.
Property consultant Colliers Philippines said major mall operators reported higher consumer traffic in 2025, supported by attractions such as pickleball courts, hybrid libraries and wellness facilities. Retail vacancy in Metro Manila improved to 10.8 per cent from 11.4 per cent in the third quarter of 2025. Colliers expects vacancy to fall to 10.2 per cent by year-end, with pre-pandemic levels potentially returning in the first half of 2027. Duon has about 50,000 monthly active users and is targeting 150,000 next year.
