Mall of Thembisa awarded best in Africa at International Property Awards

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Mall of Thembisa, situated in Olifantsfontein, Gauteng, was developed during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and opened in late November.

“The Mall of Thembisa has become an icon of hope – it was developed in the peak of a global pandemic and faced unprecedented threats during the recent riots, but it continues to stand tall and shine the light on our mission to provide essential, convenient retail of world class standards to those that need it most,” says Jason McCormick, MD of MPD.

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Its 144 stores include the largest shisanyama in SA - Imbizo of Busy Corner fame, and the unique Kasi CoLAB which was developed as a retail incubator to provide local township retail entrepreneurs access to market and capital. The CoLAB allows local startups the opportunity to trade from a prime retail location, rent free, for 12 months, with business incubation and support.

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Another of the mall's community initiatives is its Reahola market-gardens project. Established to support local upliftment and job creation, six local farmers were provided with over 1ha of raised beds, organic compost, equipment, seedlings and training to launch the project on the north east corner of the parking lot. To date, the farmers are supplying the mall’s anchor restaurant with fresh veggies and host market days to sell direct to consumers.