January 21, 2003
By Mandisi Majavu
THERE seems to be one thing tenants agree on at Metro mall: that between November and December last year, profits were dazzling. With about 150 000 people passing through the mall on a normal day, this should come as no surprise.
However, half-way through January, the sales are taking a nosedive, leaving many store-owners struggling to break even.
Many tenants are hopeful, but some are demanding a reduction in the rental and more marketing of the mall.
One tenant pointed out this week that people regard the Metro Mall as a taxi rank, not a place where they can do their shopping. And it is for this reason that the public needs to be made aware that the centre offers more than just a place to catch a taxi, he says.
Another tenant said she can't afford to pay the R10 000 rental (the fee charged for fast food outlets), excluding water and lights, she is charged by the centre management. She says she is forever in debt.
A large majority of the tenants, however, had no gripe with the centre management's performance. One of the tenants who agreed with the majority view said when he first opened his store in October, he couldn't break even, but in November business started picking up and in December sales sky-rocketed by about 20 percent. He said the only grievance he has with the management is the absence of an anchor tenant in the mall.
However there is an anchor tenant, according to Nhlanhla Ndovela, operations manager of the Metro Trading Company which manages the mall; it's the taxi rank. As for the rent complaints, she says the management has met with the tenants and both parties have agreed that the rent will be reviewed.
Another issue that the tenants seemed to agree on is the efficiency of the security at the mall. The centre has security guards 24 hours a day and there are CCTV cameras keeping a closer look on things.
The tenants we spoke to, from hawkers to formal traders, agreed that since they moved into the centre, they have not been subjected to any sort of crime.
The Metro Mall was officially opened by mayor Amos Masondo in November last year - although some stores began operating a month earlier. It houses a wide range of business outlets such as fast-foods restaurants, ATM machines, butcheries, a hair salon, clothing stores and hawkers. In his opening speech, the mayor said: "This mall will play a critical social and economic development role. It will support a conducive trading environment for both formal and informal traders, while providing easier access to the commuters into and out of the city".
