CATEGORIES: Africa, New Developments, Retail
Attacq and Attebury Open R4.9b ($343m) Mall of Africa
In late April, Mall of Africa, a 131,000m2 super-regional mall located in Waterfall City in Gauteng (South Africa) was opened by Attacq Limited and Attebury Property Developments. Construction started nearly three-and-a-half years ago in October 2012 and it was officially opened on April 28th during a select breakfast opening ceremony, with a larger scale mall launch celebration planned in May 2016. The mall is southern Africa's biggest single-phase mall development to date.
Mall of Africa. Image Source: Attebury
Mall of Africa, which is valued at R4.9 billion ($343 million), boasts more than 300 outlets, can be accessed through 26 entrances; has 50 sets of lifts, 40 escalators and approximately 6,500 parking bays. Brands on offer at the new mall include Cotton On, H&M, Forever 21, Forever New, River Island, Mango, Versace, Foschini, Mr Price and Truworths, while anchors for the Mall include national favourites Woolworths, Edgars, Checkers and Game. Brands making their first entry into South Africa through this mall include Armani Exchange, Helly Hansen, Asics, Zara Home, The Kooples, Under Armour, Mango Man and Amsterdam-based Soap Stories to mention a few. According to the developers, conservative estimates indicate that up to 15 million people will visit the destination mall annually.
Atterbury Asset Managers is responsible for Mall of Africa's asset management for its co-owners.
While the mall comprises some 131,000m2 of gross lettable area, James Ehlers, MD of Atterbury Property Developments, notes its construction area covers a massive 550,000sqm – or 78 rugby fields.
Also commenting on the development, Louis Van der Watt, CEO of Attebury adds:
"The development has enhanced the diversity of the retail sector in South Africa, changed Gauteng's skyline and stimulated the economy."
Other services included in the mall include valet parking, special drop-off facilities for buses and dedicated Uber pick-up and drop-off points – a first in the South African retail environment.
Mall of Africa is part of a larger investment by Attacq into Waterfall and Waterfall City, where they intend on closing the gap between the Johannesburg and Tshwane corridor.
Waterfall City. Image source: Attacq
Waterfall is divided into 12 different land parcels as illustrated in the following diagram. Image source: Attacq
Gauteng is one of the nine South African provinces with Johannesburg serving as the capital.