Hard to believe, but Mall of Africa is celebrating its second birthday this month! And far from having “terrible twos”, the shopping centre has really come into its own as a landmark in Waterfall City. We spoke to general manager Johann Fourie about turning two…

Happy birthday! If you look back at the last year, can you name a highlight in terms of what’s been offered at MoA?
We’ve run a number of very innovative marketing campaigns, but let me give you more detail about just one. On 25 January we launched the exclusive 11-Hour Campaign on social media –amazing deals were advertised daily on our social media platforms. The items were on sale for one day only and were packaged as an exclusive, limited-stock sale for those 11 hours only. Tenants had to offer one big-ticket item at an incredible price; and shoppers were enticed to spend at the participating stores. For example, a highly coveted jacket with a price tag of R5 000 would be for sale for one day only at 50% less.

PwC’s new head office opened right alongside since the 1st birthday – what has been the effect on trade at MoA?
We saw an increase in foot traffic of between eight and 11 percent since they opened.

Has the mall plateaued out in terms of occupancy or do you still get new tenants regularly?
Over the past six months, several strong local and international retailers, restaurant groups and specialty stores have come to call Mall of Africa home. These include Michael Kors, Emporio Armani, Tommy Hilfiger, Superdry, Refinery, Tashas restaurant, Toys R Us, Babies R Us, and Hatfield Flowers, among others. A total of 16 new stores moved in, including four relocations that were completed in time for the December 2017 trade. The four tenants who moved showed an increase of 236% in their December turnover, which contributed to the mall’s turnover growth of 10.49% year on year for December.

What in your opinion has been the biggest success at MoA in terms of marketing activations?
A key objective of our marketing strategy was to develop a strong brand positioning for the centre as the home of African luxury. Because of this we identified and developed partnerships with brands that we felt were in line with this positioning. Through these ongoing and successful partnerships, we were able to bring exclusive cultural events to Mall of Africa, and signing multi-year deals with some of them, including a three-year deal as the official venue for Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Joburg, which is run by African Fashion International (AFI). We are also hosting Africa’s Art Collective Seasons; the largest collective of its kind in South Africa with over 200 art pieces on display in the mall throughout April – this will become a quarterly event on our calendar. The National Antiques and Decorative Arts Faire (NAADA) will be returning in July 2018 for the second time, as part of a three-year deal as the exclusive venue for the event.

You even brought the beach to the mall in December! How will you top that?
The park was transformed into a summer playground with activities for children of all ages. There were water slides, volleyball, paddleboats and a mechanical surfboard as well as a giant sandpit where kids built sandcastles to their heart’s content. There were also more challenging activities too, including the exciting Super 5 Slide, which allowed five people to slide at the same time and end in a water pond.

More than 17 000 families visited the beach over the holiday period! We will definitely be doing that again – it was clear that a lot of people stayed at home over the December holidays, and loved having a beach experience on their doorstep.

What lessons have you learnt regarding what works and what doesn’t work so well in this space?
Each of our activations have taught us something, and we take note of all learnings in order to keep improving. We have for instance recognised a market to expand our campaigns into the surrounding node which will include the estates and retirement villages.

 MoA growth in numbers

  • Foot count increased 9% year on year for the month of December 2017.
  • January 2018 saw an increase of 4%, February an 8% increase and March a substantial increase of 11% in foot traffic.
  • Easter Friday saw 10% more foot traffic compared to the same period last year.
  • Turnover increased by 10.49% year on year for the month of December 2017.
  • Turnover increased by 6% for the month of January and 13% for February.
  • Womenswear showed a 6% increase and menswear showed a 20% increase in turnover in February.