First Shoprite store opens in Tete Province of Mozambique to excited crowds
Tete Junction shopping centre opened to excited crowds on the 3rd of December 2015, bringing with it an exciting new shopping experience to Tete, Mozambique. The opening marks the entrance of Africa’s largest food retailer, Shoprite, to the Tete Province. Thousands of shoppers and curious locals descended on the new centre to join in on the festivities.
Tete, with an estimated population of over 250,000 people, has been longing for a more formalised and reliable retail offering to serve the needs of the growing community. The Shoprite supermarket which opened features a full selection of groceries and fresh produce as well as a bakery, deli, butchery and liquor offerings. Brands such as Pep, Studio 88, Side Step, Standard Bank, Infotech, OK Furniture and many more have also taken up space alongside Shoprite in the new development. The construction project, which took less than 12 months to complete, was developed by Terrace Africa.
“We are thrilled to bring this new shopping experience to Tete. The project has already provided over 300 jobs to the local community and we are confident that it will encourage further investment into the town” mentions Sean Oberholzer, Development Manager for Terrace Africa.
The project team included Skyscape Architects, MLC Quantity Surveyors, BCHOD Consulting Engineers and was constructed by Berry Juice Construction LDA, which is based in Tete. Paul Beresford-Miller, Managing Director at Berry Juice says his team were very proud to be involved in the project, “Our company is delighted to have built the first Shoprite in Tete. We believe the location is perfect and the shopping centre will provide a convenient shopping destination for the people of Tete, Moatize and the surrounding districts”
The shopping centre developer, Terrace Africa, has already started with further construction projects in Mozambique and the company is very positive about the future potential of Tete Province as well as other provinces such as Cabo Delgado, Nampula and Zambezia. When asked about their thoughts on the Southern African region, Terrace Africa expressed their excitement about opportunities in both capital cities and smaller towns where they are able to make a difference to the communities and bring new concepts and products to the market.
“We firmly believe in the regions long term ecomonic prospects!” comments Brett Abrahamse, Director of Terrace Africa. “Tete Junction is the first of many new developments and we are already under construction on similar projects in Zambia and Zimbabwe. Our team is hugely enthusiastic about travel on the continent and we are excited to unlock new trading opportunities for our tenants and convenient shopping experiences for our customers”.
Tete Junction is situated in Matema suburb, on the corner of the EN103 and the University road approximately 2km from the bridge.
