The mall's R1,77bn extension, which got under way nearly three years ago, is adding another 69 stores to Sandton City, bringing the number of stores to 360. That will swell the retail space at Sandton City, owned jointly by Liberty Group (75%) and Pareto (25%), to just under 144000m², making it SA's second largest shopping centre after Old Mutual's Gateway centre in Umhlanga. The latter is around 158000m².
Originally constructed in the 1970s in the midst of what was then a largely rural area, Sandton City is one of SA's oldest shopping centres. Yet over the years it has managed to evolve continuously to meet the changing demands of consumers.
Sandton City's latest expansion project will create an additional 30000m² to further improve and broaden the centre's tenant mix and merchandise offering, says Julie Hillary, general manager Sandton region for Liberty Properties.
The new wing, dubbed Protea Court, opens to shoppers on 10 November. The extension will create a link between Edgars and Woolworths, no doubt making the mall easier to navigate. The trek from one end of the centre to the other had previously been daunting for many unless they passed through the parking garage.
The extension will be anchored by a huge 2700m² flagship Zara store - the Spanish retailer's first entry into Africa. Known for its on-trend, yet relatively affordable clothing ranges, Zara has grown its presence from one store in 1975 in Coruña in northwest Spain to 5200 in 78 countries. The retailer prides itself on its ability to spot and adapt to rapidly changing fashion trends and has a 200-strong in-house team of designers to continuously introduce new merchandise ranges to its shops.
However, Zara is not the only international retail brand that has chosen Sandton City as its launch pad into SA. Others include Australian apparel group Cotton On, which is taking up 1200m², as well as Italian luxury brand Paul & Shark. Previously available exclusively through local retailer the Surtee Group's Levinson's stores, this is Paul & Shark's first stand-alone outlet in SA. Hillary says the interior of the shop is being specially designed and manufactured in Naples, to duplicate Paul & Shark's flagship store in global fashion capital Milan.
The Surtee group is also opening a Lacoste store, similar in style and design to Lacoste stores on New York's Fifth Avenue, Paris's Champs Elysées, and those in Hamburg and Tokyo. The store will showcase the entire range of Lacoste products, from handbags and sunglasses to fragrances, footwear and fashion as well as a children's range.
Another first for Sandton City is the opening of a Hugo store, Hugo Boss's high-end men's clothing range. Lovers of the unashamedly glamorous designer labels of Nina Ricci and Christian Lacroix will from now on find both ranges at Levinson's.
Local retailer Busby Group, which already has 13 stores in Sandton City, will be extending its presence in the new wing with a concept Guess accessory store. The merchandise range includes handbags, watches, footwear, eyewear, jewellery and fragrances.
Other swish brands that will be introduced at Sandton City as stand-alone stores include US shoe store Steve Madden, men's clothing stores Ben Sherman and Hackett, and jewellers Jack Friedman, Tag Heuer and Thomas Sabo. And the list goes on.
Existing retailers have also jumped at the opportunity to increase their trading areas at Sandton City. Foschini will almost double its floor space; @Home will relocate to a store nearly four times bigger than the existing one; and Edgars will add another 2800m² of space to bring its footprint to 12000m²
Says Hillary: "We have continually received feedback from existing retailers that their stores could achieve better turnovers and trading given additional space for new or larger ranges. As a result, a number of popular retailers will be expanding to achieve this goal and several previously in-store labels will be moving to stand-alone premises, broadening the range and choice available to shoppers."
However, Sandton City is not the only retail destination that is widening its offering to Jo'burg shoppers.
Over the past two years alone more than 70000m² of new shopping centre space has been added to the northern suburbs, including Melrose Arch's Piazza, Morningside Shopping Centre and Rosebank's The Zone.
Next year, construction will start on extending the Rosebank Mall from its current 37000m² to 60000m², while the redevelopment of Village Walk will expand its shopping space from 14000m² to 34000m².
Source: Financial Mail
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