Developers are using the retail industry as a vehicle to drive economic development in small and neglected towns in Transkei with several multimillion rand shopping malls springing up in rural towns in recent months.
On Thursday, the country’s first black motor racing national champion-turned property developer Tschops Sipuka opened a modern retail centre in the heart of his hometown of Qumbu.
Before that, the Billion Group, under the chairmanship of Mthatha-born property magnate Sisa Ngebulana, opened the BT Ngebs City Mall in Mthatha earlier this year.
The Billion Group reportedly invested around R1.4-billion on the construction of the city’s biggest mall to date and a further R60-million on upgrading some internal roads in Mthatha.
The company is also planning a smaller mall in rural Ngcobo, about 80km from Mthatha. Ngebulana earlier this year told the Dispatch they were using retail as a catalyst for much bigger things.
He added that his mother was from Ngcobo, hence it was also close to his heart and “besides that it is one of the busiest towns”.
Speaking to the Saturday Dispatch about the Qumbu development, 37-year-old Tschops said the mall had 13 shops and planning it had been in the works for five years.
“Qumbu is my hometown and I wanted to build something that is going to stand the test of time.”
He described property development as a life-long passion. He said the new business, named Qumbu Retail Centre, would help bring much-needed services to the residents of his home town.
“People had to travel more than 100km to Mthatha to get something. Why not bring those shops here?” he said adding that it would also assist in job creation initiatives in the crime-ridden Qumbu area.
Mhlontlo municipality council chief whip Margaret Mvanyashe lauded Tschops and his family for setting up the mall, saying it would bring relief to the municipality which had acted as the main driver of employment in the area for years.
She said the economy in the rural town had shot up immensely since it opened.
“Lots of our people have received jobs. We are proud of Tschops and his family as they have contributed to the growth of this town,” said Mvanyashe.
A consumer spending report from Eastern Cape department of economic development, environmental affairs and tourism lists OR Tambo district as having the greatest household income and consumption figures, surpassing the two metros.
The district’s consumer expenditure reached R45-billion in 2013 while it stood at R32-billion for Buffalo City Metro with the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro coming in at third with R26-billion.
Statistics also show that households in the district only spent R14.7-billion in 2003.
The report, however, states that OR Tambo relies mostly on unearned income, which is mainly income from state aid.
OR Tambo District Business of Chamber president Vuyisile Ntlabati said the main concern was that most residents were still consumers of goods although it was encouraging to see locals investing in their own areas of birth.
He also said while there had been a significant push in terms of development, retail industry largely remained untapped in many parts of the district.
“Government and the retail sector are the biggest contributors to employment in our district. Instead of just being consumers, we should be creating jobs,” he said.
Ntlabati said the sudden interest in the rural towns could be dictated by market trends.
“Places like Johannesburg are already developed that is why you see a lot of people coming to invest back home. They see that there are lots of opportunities, especially in retail. There is a lot of disposable income here in the form of grants.”
But he said the boom could also signal a change in fortunes for the district as it could lead to massive job creation and also help create a new batch of entrepreneurs.
New malls boost T’kei towns
On Thursday, the country’s first black motor racing national champion-turned property developer Tschops Sipuka opened a modern retail centre in the heart of his hometown of Qumbu.
Before that, the Billion Group, under the chairmanship of Mthatha-born property magnate Sisa Ngebulana, opened the BT Ngebs City Mall in Mthatha earlier this year.
The Billion Group reportedly invested around R1.4-billion on the construction of the city’s biggest mall to date and a further R60-million on upgrading some internal roads in Mthatha.
The company is also planning a smaller mall in rural Ngcobo, about 80km from Mthatha. Ngebulana earlier this year told the Dispatch they were using retail as a catalyst for much bigger things.
He added that his mother was from Ngcobo, hence it was also close to his heart and “besides that it is one of the busiest towns”.
Speaking to the Saturday Dispatch about the Qumbu development, 37-year-old Tschops said the mall had 13 shops and planning it had been in the works for five years.
“Qumbu is my hometown and I wanted to build something that is going to stand the test of time.”
He described property development as a life-long passion. He said the new business, named Qumbu Retail Centre, would help bring much-needed services to the residents of his home town.
“People had to travel more than 100km to Mthatha to get something. Why not bring those shops here?” he said adding that it would also assist in job creation initiatives in the crime-ridden Qumbu area.
Mhlontlo municipality council chief whip Margaret Mvanyashe lauded Tschops and his family for setting up the mall, saying it would bring relief to the municipality which had acted as the main driver of employment in the area for years.
She said the economy in the rural town had shot up immensely since it opened.
“Lots of our people have received jobs. We are proud of Tschops and his family as they have contributed to the growth of this town,” said Mvanyashe.
A consumer spending report from Eastern Cape department of economic development, environmental affairs and tourism lists OR Tambo district as having the greatest household income and consumption figures, surpassing the two metros.
The district’s consumer expenditure reached R45-billion in 2013 while it stood at R32-billion for Buffalo City Metro with the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro coming in at third with R26-billion.
Statistics also show that households in the district only spent R14.7-billion in 2003.
The report, however, states that OR Tambo relies mostly on unearned income, which is mainly income from state aid.
OR Tambo District Business of Chamber president Vuyisile Ntlabati said the main concern was that most residents were still consumers of goods although it was encouraging to see locals investing in their own areas of birth.
He also said while there had been a significant push in terms of development, retail industry largely remained untapped in many parts of the district.
“Government and the retail sector are the biggest contributors to employment in our district. Instead of just being consumers, we should be creating jobs,” he said.
Ntlabati said the sudden interest in the rural towns could be dictated by market trends.
“Places like Johannesburg are already developed that is why you see a lot of people coming to invest back home. They see that there are lots of opportunities, especially in retail. There is a lot of disposable income here in the form of grants.”
But he said the boom could also signal a change in fortunes for the district as it could lead to massive job creation and also help create a new batch of entrepreneurs.
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