Steady growth in size for SA shopping malls

SOUTH Africa’s shopping malls are getting bigger, according to a study conducted for the SA Council of Shopping Centres.

Data indicates that the average size of centres developed has steadily increased since the 1990s with centres scheduled for completion by 2020 being significantly larger than those developed during the 1990s and 2000s.

This trend towards larger centres may be explained by developers opting for larger formats to dominate the catchment area and attract more tenants.

The data also indicates that proposed centres planned in the country’s city regions, local/niche towns and service towns are all now 100% larger compared to those developed during the 2000s.

As of July, the South African retail development pipeline measures 1.9 million m² across 68 centres – the bulk of which is planned for completion next year, the study, conducted by Morgan Stanley Capital International, has found.

According to the council, South Africa has the sixth most shopping centres in the world – and yet, we continue to build more malls in terms of square meterage of retail space.

South Africa ranks as sub-Saharan Africa’s most saturated retail market, representing 88% of the available space in the region. Since 2010, retail stock has grown by an average of 17.3% with 32 new centres a year.

Last year, Menlyn Park, now the largest shopping centre in South Africa, completed its R2 billion redevelopment that added 50 000m² of retail space to its already massive footprint, making it one of the largest malls in Africa.

The Pavilion as well as Ballito Junction, both in KwaZulu-Natal, have also undergone expansion.

In February, the Fourways Mall expansion project in Johannesburg broke ground. This project, costing R23.7m, will see the mall become a retail behemoth of 175 000m².

Another reason given for the increase in mall size and redevelopment is globalisation which has brought many international brands to South Africa.