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26 October 2007

Maponya Mall: The Good News

With vibrant and robust trade, Maponya Mall is celebrating its first month in business. Consumers are already benefiting from convenience and choice; and retailers are seeing excellent results from their decision to take a shop at this mega-mall. The Maponya Mall advertising campaign: "Big Mall. Big Experience. Big Time." that is visible throughout Soweto on taxis and billboard, seems to put it to the point what the new shoppers of the development are thinking.

Close to 170 000 shoppers showed-up on 27 September 2007 to witness the opening of Maponya Mall as former president Nelson Mandela cut the ribbon and ushered in a new era of world-class shopping. Other well-know South African's such as executive mayor of Johannesburg, MECs, soccer legend Lucas Radebe, jazz queen Abigail Khubeka, Oscar winning stars from the movie Tstoti Presley Chweneyagae and Terry Pheto, and musician Sipho Mabuse also graced the occasion.

"Before, we had to go to town to buy stuff like shoes and we would spend R10 on a taxi, only to buy one item. Now it is better. You can buy it here," says Solly Hlatshwayo who is a Maponya Mall shopper, and also worked as a welder in the new mall's construction.

Independent business owners are amongst those adding local flavour to the mall's impressive array of retail giants such as Woolworths, the New Clicks Organisation, Edcon and more. Co-developers, the Maponya Group, have actively encouraged BEE participation, and as a result, the mall boasts the highest BEE tenant ratio's of any mall in the country - at 30% - with many franchise groups providing ownership opportunities for local traders.

On opening day, Chichi Maponya, director of Maponya Group said that each tenant will grow and prosper under the Maponya Mall umbrella. And this indeed seems to be the case.

Pinky Buthelezi, owner of Fashion People, a local accessories store with branches at Highgate and Protea Gardens reports that in the first two weeks of trading at Maponya Mall, her sales at this shopping centre where better than at her other two stores.

The mall signifies an important shift in Soweto's image from an impoverished 'no go' area to one with a diversified product offering that is price competitive, and includes a range of entertainment and dining experiences.

Muneer Patel, partner in the Maponya Mall Spur franchise says, "It's a first class, excellent store. We had record turnover for an opening of any Spur in the country."

Manager and partner in the Maponya Mall Nando's franchise, Asif Patel, concurs, "Expectations have been exceeded and we are very happy with the start we've had."

Pick 'n Pay's 12 000m² of retail space is the first 'new look' Hyper in the country and the first Pick 'n Pay in Soweto - not to mention one of the largest outlets in the country. The popularity of the store is undeniable, and the store has been selling more than 200 trolleys of eggs a day since its opening.

Pick 'n Pay launched one of its biggest Hyper stores at Maponya Mall, Sakkie Joubert, property director, of Pick 'n Pay group says, "We are very pleased with the stores performance. It is very much in line with expectations and we see it going from strength to strength."

"Everything is here, even your upmarket specialist stores, are right here in the township!" says shopper Mpho Mabule. Not only that, but the mall also offers extended shopping hours from 09:00 - 19:00 Monday to Thursday, 09:00 - 20:00 Friday to Saturday and 09:00 - 17:00 on Sunday and Public holidays.

Maponya Mall offers Sowetan's an unsurpassed shopping experience with everyting under one roof from groceries to banking, furniture to cell phones, electronics to clothing, but the mall represents many 'firsts' for not only the township, but the country and even the continent, such as the first Chevro Sports and Leisure store - a luxury brand of Italian sportsware previously unavailable in South Africa. It also boasts the first Geox shoe store for Africa, as well as the being the flagship store for the continents first pan-African, lifestyle concept chain, Woodin. Not to mention home to Soweto's first Ster Kinekor and Toys R Us.

Maponya Mall will also be the first mall in Soweto (or any previously disadvantaged area in SA for that matter) to install Bluetooth as a media channel. This then also makes the mall one of the most technologically advanced in Africa. "Shows that it stands back for no one," says Petros Kondos, director of WCIT, Bluetooth provider to the mall.

Monalisa Sam, centre manager for Maponya Mall says, "This is possibly the most exciting work to be at right now. For me, what is most exciting is how far the tenants have gone in putting out great shop fittings and making a real effort. I think a lot of the people are here to look at the uniqueness of the mall and its beautiful aesthetics."

The R650 million mall lacks nothing by way of finishes, and shoppers can, for the first time, experience a world-class shopping experience in Soweto and offers 200 shops that cater to every taste and budget.

Maponya Mall provides a welcome cash injection for the area, stimulating fixed investments of the area, providing approximately 1 685 jobs, and retaining a significant portion of the estimated 4.3 billion rand in annual consumer spend that was previously spent outside the township. Developer's the Maponya Group and Zenprop Property Holdings estimate that the mall will attract approximately 1.5 million shoppers per month.

Features such as the Hector Pietersen memorial statue that is housed at the Maponya Mall will also attract expenditure from an estimated 2 000 tourists who visit Soweto daily.

"Maponya Mall not only makes us proud, it represents the graduation of businesses in Soweto and the potential for a previously disadvantaged township to evolve into an economic powerhouse," says Jason Mgobeni, the executive director in the economic development department of the city of Johannesburg.

Centre manageress Monalisa Sam says, "There's overwhelming pride in the customers. To date we've had no cars stolen. Safety for the customers has been achieved - with vigilant, proactive and discrete security. Everyone in the community is so proud and wants to protect this asset as much as we do."

Maponya Mall was the 28-year dream of Soweto's 'father of retail', Richard Maponya. Mr. Maponya's entrepreneurial spirit and contribution to business, despite the Apartheid conditions, earned him the title of Grand Counsellor of the Order of the Baobab in April 2007. "When I bought the land, I believed that the people of Soweto deserved a better life," says Maponya. It remains his fondest hope that it is the people of Soweto who will reap the most reward from the mall.

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