As political and cultural centre of Vietnam, Hanoi is the second largest city by population. The one-thousand-year-old ancient city is an attractive tourist destination where many dynasties have left their imprint and built historic and cultural sites. With rapid economic development high population density, more modern retail formats such as large modern supermarkets, shopping centres and department stores have opened in the market. The total supply of modern retail space by mid-2018 was recorded at nearly 820,000 sm. Traditional street hawkers and shop houses are still popular in the city, especially in the historic district, Hoan Kiem district. Limited retail space in the CBD has pushed up the pressure on demand due to preferences of big retailers, particularly new international entries. Retail neighbourhoods have been gradually establishing themselves in Hanoi. Whilst the CBD is the traditional fine dining and boutique centre, the West of Hanoi is emerging as a new CBD with a growing number of offices and residential development projects, supported by retail facilities and demand from Japanese and Korean customers.