The vibrant, yet isolated, KwaZulu-Natal rural town of Tugela Ferry is set to get its very first shopping mall when Tugela Ferry Mall opens in April 2015.
With investment from Copper Zone (Pty) Ltd and the retail leasing know-how of Retail Network Services, for the first time over 184,200 residents of the 41 800 households in bustling Tugela Ferry will enjoy a comprehensive 15,000sqm community shopping centre, in their own town.
The retailers for Tugela Ferry Mall, anchored by Shoprite, will include a comprehensive retail mix from convenience and banking to fashion, food and furniture. Each shop is specially matched to retail needs of customers in the area. They include Cashbuild, Ellerines, OK Furniture, The Post Office, JD Group, Electric Express, Jet, Liquor City, KFC, Edgars Active, Ackermans, Exact, Standard Bank, Capitec Bank, Rage, Express Stores, Lewis Stores, Pep, Pep Cell and Waltoo Chicken & Meat, among others.
This means that Tugela Ferry residents will no longer have to travel substantial distances for basic shopping services. Tugela Ferry is located 45km north of Greytown, 77km south of Dundee and 105km east of Ladysmith. All are a long way to travel access meaningful formal retail. This made Tugela Ferry residents’ shopping unnecessarily inaccessible, difficult and costly, with travel expenses reducing their spending power.
“While the mall stands to benefit this out-of-the-way town, the town’s isolation will also benefit the mall by making it the most convenient place for residents to shop, by far. This creates a true win-win situation, which supports the sustainability of this development,” says Gavin Tagg of Retail Network Services.
Besides providing much-needed retail services to the community, Tugela Ferry Mall is also strengthening the town’s central role in the area. The lively Tugela Ferry is a major town in the heart of the Msinga District of the Umzinyathi District Municipality. It is on the Tugela River’s northern bank and is a seat of the Tribal Authority Government for the area.
Tugela Ferry Mall will complement its community facilities which include a hospital, municipal offices, police station, schools, courts, the local office of the Department of Home Affairs and a new Library, which is directly next to the mall.
Making shopping even easier, Tugela Ferry is on the main R33 route which goes right through town. This means the mall also benefits from excellent accessibility and visibility, making it convenient for passing traffic.
“Tugela Ferry Mall will go beyond bringing comprehensive convenient everyday shopping to local residents, it will also serve as a central social hub for the community,” says Tagg.
Retail Network Services is responsible for leasing Tugela Ferry Mall. It is a full-service specialist retail leasing company with an excellence record of successes to its name.
Recent Mall openings include: Protea Glen Shopping Centre (GLA of 28 000m²), in Soweto which opening in September 2012, Diepkloof Square (GLA of 16 000m²), in Soweto which opened in October 2012, Elim Mall (GLA of 21 000m²), in Limpopo and Mahwelereng Shopping Centre (GLA 13 000m²), in Mokopane both opening in March 2013 and the most recent being Jozini Shopping Centre (GLA 18 000m²) in Kwa-Zulu Natal which opened in October 2013.
