Retail news. Semester 1 of 2014 table of contents

New mall for Jouberton, NW province. 14 Mar 2012

Jouberton, which adjoins Klerksdorp, a major North West province mining area, will see the Goldfields Mall open in the second quarter of 2013.

Construction begins in May 2012 on the new 15 000 sqm shopping centre at the intersection of the N12 and Jabulani Street. The new shopping centre will be the first modern shopping centre in Jouberton and will include 500 parking bays. The Southern Taxi Council, as the umbrella body representing the local taxi associations, has purpose-designed the fully-fledged taxi facility for 30 taxis and has lent its support to this project.

Rob Terry, development manager for Landmark Real Estate, property developers of the new shopping centre, says more and more retailers with vision are offering their brands in South Africa's townships. "Combined with the adjacent suburbs of Manzil Park and Alabama, the historically black township of Jouberton has the highest density of residents in the region. The reasons for this trend toward township retail development are self-evident and revolve mainly around expediency and price.

"For its 200 000 residents, the new shopping centre will eliminate the need for a 25 km round trip to Klerksdorp by taxi in order to purchase necessities, a few luxuries or enjoy a meal out. This will be a modern and attractive mall with landscape features and amenities that will provide the area with a central hub, not only for shopping but also as a social meeting place - something which is entirely lacking outside the churches and schools in the area."

Multiple retail investments in area

Terry says that in recent months there have been a number of major retail investment announcements in such previously disadvantaged areas by companies such as Old Mutual, Vukile, Advent Asset Management, Dipula and the PIC (Public Investment Corporation), among others, indicating investor confidence in this important retail sector.

"Retailers active in this arena are reporting significantly higher growth compared with so-called traditional retailing nodes. Fortress Property Fund, which has good exposure to low income commuter-type retail centres, recently reported impressive growth of 10 percent in distributions over the previous year, clearly confirming this higher performance," he says.

House price reports by FNB in recent years add further weight to the indication of increasing stability and growth in these areas, with the average urban township home now worth over R250 000 and growing at in excess of 10% per annum. This outperforms the just 3.8% average growth in house prices in the six major metro regions as a whole.

Letting forges ahead

"Currently the centre is approximately 85% pre-let to national tenants. Shoprite is the anchor tenant trading from a 3 500 sqm store, complemented by Hyper Butchery and Nizams. Meanwhile PEP and Jet will head up the fashion offering and Cashbuild, the DIY component. Eateries include KFC, Traditional Fish 'n Chips and several other national franchises, while furniture outlets include OK Furniture, Lewis and Fairprice. A Post Office branch enhances the service mix. Because of its size and expansion potential, this centre should remain the dominant retail offering in the area for the foreseeable future," concludes Terry.

Landmark's executive director, Lionel Kisten, adds, "It is noteworthy that there is commitment in the centre from the national fashion sector beyond Jet and PEP. It seems that astute retailers have recognised that fashion should be offered at the brand conscious consumers' doorstep. PEP pioneered fashion retail in black townships, a factor that contributed to its success as South Africa's largest fashion outlet. In recent years, Jet has followed a similar strategy and is a serious player in this market. It's encouraging to now see other retailers recognising the business potential offered in these areas."

To date banking services in the new centre are to be provided by FNB Easy-Bank and Standard Bank and Landmark reports that negotiations are ongoing with the other banks.

Retail offers career prospects as fourth largest contributor to GDP. 8 Oct 2012

The career path within retail goes beyond cashiers, packers and sales assistants as the industry has an annual turnover of R1.1-trillion, employs 1.8 million of South Africa's active workforce and at 15% of South Africa's GDP, is the fourth largest contributor to the GDP.

Because the number and variety of staff needed to keep such a major industry going are huge, there are so many more rungs up the ladder of a career in retail than just shop floor staff. Young people seeking employment and those trying to decide on a career path often do not stop to think that retailing goes way beyond that.

Retail could be the answer to school-leavers who not only face the task of deciding what to do with the rest of their lives but also battle to find jobs, with an oversupply of labour in many professions and trades. Qualifications relevant to the retail sector offer a ray of hope - they can provide young people with an avenue to a whole variety of coveted and well-paying careers.

Skills shortage in industry

Massive skills shortages in South Africa's retail sector translate into promising opportunities for those who wish to succeed in one of many careers that could progress further than a minimum wage position.

The skills shortage in the country's retail sector was made evident by a recent analysis by the Wholesale and Retail SETA, which found that less than 6% of those employed within this sector hold a tertiary qualification and even more worryingly, almost 53% do not even have a matric certificate.

On the one hand, this means that the sector is being crippled by a shortage of skilled managers and by employees who occupy these positions but cannot perform competently. On the other hand, masses of employees in entry-level positions have little hope of being promoted to more senior positions, as they simply don't have the requisite qualifications and experience."

Employment agencies have noted the problem too. Currently, nearly 70% of the posted job adverts in the retail category are for mid-level managers and require skilled and senior labour, but only around 44% of potential career seekers possess the necessary skills. This translates into a critical shortage of about 49000 retail managers. At the other end of the scale, the demand for entry level and junior staff is very low, yet thousands of those with a matric certificate or less are clamouring for these jobs.

Jump entry-level competition with training

The fact that so many young people are fighting for these almost menial jobs is quite tragic, considering that the right training and experience could fast track them right into one of over 67 other career paths that the retail industry offers. Included in these other career options are marketing, human resources, information technology, financial management, auditing, procurement, supply chain management, customer service management and administration.

The company has already helped 160 previously unemployed youth to launch into careers in the retail industry. Another 602 young people are currently "retail managers in the making" as 500 work towards an NQF5 and 100 an NQF 3 qualifications in retail through its Rural Youth Project. At the same time, they are interning at stores belonging to the company's partner retailers, AutoZone, Essential Group, TWK, The Foschini Group, OK stores, Cambridge Foods and Pep Stores in the rural parts of the Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, the North West and the Northern Cape.

The company is passionate about young people and is dedicated to helping as many as possible to beat poverty and succeed beyond their greatest expectations. With the existing skills shortages in the retail sector, a qualification relevant to retailing makes a candidate the pick of the crop when it comes to recruiting in this industry. In addition, the wealth of career opportunities this sector offers gives so many young people a chance to find themselves a fulfilling place in the workforce within the retail industry.