One of Kenya’s oldest shopping mall in Nairobi Sarit Centre is set to undergo a US$ 40m upgrade that will enable it attract more customers after the emergence of several new competitors in the country.
The expansion project will entail construction of a new mall just adjacent to the old one with an addition 25,000 square feet of space hence doubling its size.
Sarit Centre Director, Nitin Shah confirmed the reports and said that consumers are getting younger and are savvier hence the expansion. The new space will have international retailers who have recently expanded into the country.
“We are looking for ways to keep visitors at the mall after 6pm. We are open to fine dining options like specialty restaurants, pubs, cinemas. The new space will also have international retailers who have recently expanded into the country,” he said.
Also read:Kenya’s mall Sarit Centre to construct a US$ 40m building
The initiative comes at a time when other entrants have come into the market like The Garden City, Two Rivers Mall, Westgate Mall and The Hub Karen.
Sarit Centre is owned by Soma Properties which is developer based in Nairobi. The mall houses close to 130 tenants including top retail brands and service companies. It opened its doors in April 1983 and has successfully managed to stave off increased competition and still cater to an average 20,000 visitors every day.
A 2016 Knight Frank report showed that Nairobi has the largest mall development hotspot in the region with around 470,000 square metres of shopping centre space in the pipeline.
This status secured it a top five position among other sub-Saharan Africa cities
