Menlyn Park Shopping Centre opens

This marks the end of the first phase of a R2-billion redevelopment of Pretoria's largest shopping centre. "Our aim is to create an environment that's not only pleasing to the eye, but is also about superb convenience and accessibility," said Marius Muller, CEO of Pareto, co-owner of Menlyn Park Shopping Centre.

The new-look Checkers Hyper includes its first in-store coffee shop, home to a dedicated seating area and delicatessen, alongside a new takeaway Gourmet Burger Bar, which allows shoppers to pay for their hamburgers with the rest of their shopping.

Food Lovers Market has opened an upmarket version of its standard stores, including old favourites such as fresh produce and wine sections, a butchery, a bakery, a dairy, a seafood counter and a water bar. The Market Café seating area allows shoppers to sit and eat whatever they buy in the store. Other drawcards include a live herb wall and a Seattle Coffee Company grab-and-go counter.

Pick n Pay has opened a brand new store, modelled on the one-stop-shop experience. Everything from banking services to drawing social grants or booking flights and car hire is on offer, aside from the standard grocery shopping facility. The store also features Pick n Pay's new-look produce and clothing departments, with ample space for customers to stroll down wide shopping aisles.

New World Discount Stores, has opened its largest store to date in Grocery Avenue. A number of firsts are on offer here, including a premium Samsung brand store, an LG shop-in-shop, a Panasonic shop-in-shop, a disco-stage shop-in-shop, a Casio G-Factory shop-in-shop, as well as an elevated nine-panel TV wall allowing customers to have clear sight of the screens from wherever they are in the store.

Major milestone

"Grocery Avenue is the largest area of its kind in Pretoria and is the next major milestone in our bid to become the largest mall on the continent," said Peter Levett, CEO of Old Mutual Property, co-owner of Menlyn Park Shopping Centre. "We're celebrating this with a three week-long promotion in the new forecourt adjacent to the stores, featuring appearances and live cooking demos by SuzelleDIY, Siba Mtongana from Siba's Table and J-Something from Micasa."

During the launch period, the three celebrity chefs will take the helm over the three weekends from 26 June. Shoppers will be invited to spend R500 or more at any of the new stores in Grocery Avenue and stand a chance of winning daily prizes.

Grocery Avenue, which is the far-western extension of the shopping centre, is accessible from Atterbury and Garsfontein Roads. It offers easily accessible open and covered parking very close to all three chain stores. Other tenants in Grocery Avenue include House & Home, Vodacom, Telkom, Verimark, Specsavers, Levingers Dry Cleaning, Sahara Halaal Biltong, House of Candy, Style Studio, Ocean Basket, Parrots, Checkers Liquor, Tobacconist & Gift Store, Montaqu Menlyn, Tidy Tucs Tailer, Vodacom 4 U and King Pie. Trading hours are Monday to Thursday 9am to 7pm, Friday 9am to 9pm, Saturday 9am to 7pm and Sunday 9am to 5pm.