EDENDALE MALL ’ S FINAL PHASE OPENS FOR TRADE
Edendale Mall is serving its community again . Located in Plessislaer in Pietermaritzburg , KZN , Edendale Mall was severely damaged in the riots that took place in July 2021 .
Owned by rural and township retail specialists , Exemplar REITail , the mall has welcomed back an extensive tenant mix that caters to the fashion conscious , experience seeking consumer . In order to ensure the community had access to convenient retail as soon as possible , the mall was rebuilt in phases , with the first phase reopened in August of last year . The reopening of the third and final phase of the mall brings Exemplar ’ s July unrest rebuild journey to a close .
The company ’ s asset base was severely impacted by the events that unfolded just under two years ago with five centres across Gauteng and KZN affected . While four of those five were rebuilt and trading by the 2021 Festive Season , Edendale Mall required a strategic rethink .
“ The team took the opportunity to recreate the Edendale Mall we had always envisioned ,” explains CEO of Exemplar , Jason McCormick . “ Inspired by the community that we had grown with from the original opening in 2011 , we relooked at our tenant mix , consolidated our GLA and designed a more compact but no less impressive centre of 30,000m 2 .”
Phase 1 of the development was opened in August 2022 with a focus on food , healthcare and banking . Phase 2 , opened in November 2022 , saw the reopening of an additional grocery anchor and the food court . It was Phase 3 , opened in late March , that saw the real wow factor being revealed as the fashion corridor was opened to link Phase 1 and 2 together . Vastly increased natural lighting , expanded walkways , elevated bulkheads and uniquely laid tiling all contribute to the updated image of the centre .
As has become expected from Exemplar assets , the mall has a strong community entertainment element . An allweather sports field for community soccer and netball lovers ; an eventing court for weekly aerobics , local performers and community markets ; as well as the next ‘ Kasi CoLAB ’ have all been added to the mix to help uplift and empower the community . First opened at the Mall of Thembisa in Gauteng , the Kasi CoLAB is a township retail incubator that allows local design entrepreneurs the opportunity to get to grips with the retail environment .
“ Now we rise to the challenge of our upcoming pipeline of developments . Our
next ten projects span 246,000m 2 of retail space , serving 1,705 million people in the most under-serviced regions of the country . With Tshakhuma Mall opening
in September , we are also focusing on our Dan City , Capital Mall , Leratong City , Vuwani Mall and Idutywa Mall developments . It is great to focus all of our energy on new builds again ,” ends Jason .
News Watch 7