RMB Westport ups the scale in retail devt at Circle Mall
A new innovation has come into retail development in Nigeria as the developers of Circle Mall in Lagos have taken a step further to integrate business centre into the development, offering shopping and office experience and opportunities to both shoppers and businesses on-the-move.
Circle Mall, an 11,000 square metre retail mall, is a joint venture development by RMB Westport—a real estate investment management and development firm focusing on property development in Sub-Saharan Africa—and PMN Investments, a subsidiary of Paragon Holdings Limited which is a diversified business conglomerate operating across different sectors of the Nigerian economy and Africa.
Nigerians are very familiar to retail malls where they go for shopping and occasional relaxation but Circle Mall, which enjoys strategic location along the Lekki-Epe Expressway with a short-eye-view-distance from the Jakande Roundabout, is coming with something novel, making it the first of its kind in Lagos and Nigeria as a whole.
“Circle Mall is the first of its kind in Lagos with retail component which is the mall, and commercial component, which is an office space adjacent the mall. It is a unique concept in Nigeria, especially in Lagos. It is not something that has been done before. With this, you can have a commercial experience within an office environment”, Roy Hamlyn, RMB Westport’s Development Manager, said.
Hamlyn who spoke at pre-Customers Forum press conference at the project site recently, said the entire project which had reached 60 percent completion, on construction side, would be delivered in December this year, disclosing that his company had been involved in many projects in Nigeria including the Ikeja City Mall which, he noted, was fully tenanted.
Dieter Boshoff, RMB Westport’s Leasing Adviser, who was visibly excited about the project, noted that the mall which has Shoprite as anchor tenant has interesting tenant mix, pointing out that the mall has open and mature design with ample parking space and easy access to and from the expressway.
According to him, what was significant about the mall was the emphasis on quality construction using quality contractors and subcontractors, noting that, for them at RMB Wesport, the tenant mix was critical because of the sustainability of the project.
“The Circle Business Centre comprises 3,700 square metres international quality office space conveniently situated adjacent the Circle Mall retail centre; it is designed to be state-of-the-art business premises, offering Lagos first campus-style office park, Boshoff enthused, adding, “the Business Centre features 72 dedicated basement parking bays, elegant design features and everything necessary for convenient and streamlined office operations”.
As a company, RMB Wesport has enormous confidence in the Nigerian economy and, according to Boshoff, the size of their projects and investments are a measure of their commitment to, and confidence in the Nigerian retail market which has both prospects and potential.
“Our confidence in this economy is huge. Our next project is three times the size of this Circle Mall and that tells you we are quite confident and sure of the market. We are committed to long term relationship in Nigeria”, he emphasized.
Affirming this commitment, Emmanuel Efuntayo, the Principal Consultant at Ibukun Efuntayo & Company—one of the leasing agents—urged commendation for the developer, pointing out that their activities in the country have helped to solve employment problem and also grown the economy.
Obiajulu Uzoigwe, Retail Leasing Manager at Broll, another leasing agent for the mall, assured prospective tenants of quality and reputable tenant mix, disclosing that the mall was already 90 percent leased out and that, on the average, the shop spaces go for $65 per square metre.
CHUKA UROKO