Shoprite to rent vacated space at Acacia Mall

August 28, 2017 in Business, Companies, Investment, Trade & Industry by Editor

August 28—Shoprite Group, Africa’s largest food retailer, is set to open its third store in Uganda at Acacia Mall on the outskirts of central Kampala. The space was recently vacated by financially troubled retailer, Nakumatt.

Shoprite’s expansion is part of the group’s effort to grow its footprint in the current countries it operates in addition to new countries all together.  Shoprite first opened its doors in Kampala in November 2000 on Ben Kiwanuka Street and later at Lugogo Mall.

Pieter Engelbrecht, the Chief Executive Officer said,  “We have now achieved 64 consecutive quarters of like-for-like sales growth. Our latest results are proof that the Group is healthy and able to thrive across multiple brands and countries, notwithstanding the headwinds.”

The Shoprite Group serves over 35 million customers in Africa. Listed as a public company on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and with secondary listings on both the Namibian and Zambian Stock Exchange, Shoprite operates 2689 outlets in 15 countries across Africa and the Indian Ocean Islands which consist of 613 Shoprite supermarkets, 246 Checkers and Checkers Hyper supermarkets, 367 Usave stores among other brands dealing in furniture, fast food, pharmaceuticals and household items.

Marc Du Toit, the Head of Retail at Knight Frank Uganda which manages Acacia Mall, sees an opportunity for Shoprite to expand steadily in Uganda due to its rapidly increasing population growth rate and consumer base.

He said, “Shoprite will be a great addition to our shoppers’ experience since it provides a variety of products. We expect the supermarket to start trading in early 2018 or sooner if all goes well, this is part of the redevelopment of Acacia Mall which was announced earlier this year, the redevelopment is to include some high powered international fashion brands, therefore cementing Acacia Mall as Kampala’s leading shopping centre.”

According to  statement, despite the persisting high levels of unemployment and shrinking disposable income in parts of Africa, Shoprite has proven its ability to operate profitably in difficult conditions. Its strategy to conveniently provide affordable food and everyday household items at low prices while offering exceptional service has aided its expansion beyond Southern Africa.

Knight Frank is the world’s leading independent real estate consultancy and Knight Frank Uganda Limited offers a comprehensive range of property agency, management, valuation and consultancy services in Uganda, while representing the highest standards of quality and integrity in global property transactional, management and advisory services led by an experienced team of professionals.