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Rundu gets another large mall

Safland’s Leasing Director, Mirinda van der Merwe, this week advised that the construction of the Rundu Shopping Mall is well underway and on track. “Construction of this new mall began in February this year and the centre is being built in two phases with phase one comprising our anchor tenant Shoprite and another 5000m² for Clicks, Pep Home, Checkers Liquor, Hungry Lion, KFC, Street House, Ackermans, Style, and Beaver Canoe” she said. “The focus by Developer Safcoll, a fund managed by Safland International, is to try and accommodate new tenants that are not yet present in Rundu instead of duplicating shops, thereby creating unnecessary competition. It is always our aim to build a strong brand around our malls and to ensure tenant and shopper satisfaction on all levels. This includes new shops which offer shoppers a variety.” Van der Merwe said phase 1 will open on 30 April 2015, while phase two is expected to be done by May 2015 with an additional 9000m².

This means the end product will cover an area of 14,000 m², making it the biggest shopping centre in northern Namibia. “Initially we also had a look at another stand on the outskirts of Rundu but decided to build centrally, thereby keeping the mall within the CBD of Rundu, to strengthen the business district instead of creating more competition. We followed the same principle in Otjiwarongo and Ondangwa and this has been a winning recipe for the towns, the population and Namibia as a whole” she said. Safland has, over the past years, build up a solid reputation and is instrumental in some of the biggest construction projects, including the much anticipated Grove Mall of Namibia in Windhoek, set to open on 25 September 2014. “We mot only do construction, we are also proud of the many added benefits that this type of work has for Namibia,” said Van der Merwe.  “Jobs are created, in Rundu for example 300 people are employed during the construction and once the mall is operational approximately 250 people will be employed. Skills development is another bonus as quantity surveyors, engineers and the like get experience in designing, planning and building of shopping malls and such experience is invaluable.  Retail sales of the new Rundu Mall is estimated to top N$280 million per year and N$1,6 billion over 5 years while Foreign Direct Investment is estimated at N$120 million and the development value at N$165 million.

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