In this first installment of Know Your Mall – a column designed to provide readers with in-depth details of local shopping malls – we feature Game City.
The famous shopping complex is the flagship property of real estate developers, Turnstar Holdings Ltd.
In this enlightening interview, Turnstar’s Asset Manager, Kagiso Morokotso fields questions on one of the biggest malls in the country.
When was Game City established?
Turnstar was established in 2002.
Alongside the establishment of Turnstar, Game City was also established.
The mall was conceived between the years 2002 and 2004 and was established by Gulaam Abdoola.
The company was subsequently listed on the stock exchange and had a lot of people coming on board.
Which market of the society were you targeting?
Look, I must say the founder of the company is a very articulate person and particular to attention.
So when the mall was being conceived, he was very particular in offering shoppers an experience, ‘a lifestyle’ if you may call it.
The idea was to offer convenience, nightlife, dining and a special shopping experience to anyone who was coming through our borders.
Besides the shopping experience, what other services can be found in the mall?
We have a very energetic and hyper marketing department.
You will realize that our head office is here at the mall and just a stone throw away is our events venue.
We have different themed arenas where we host corporate events, parties, and anything that is formal.
Amongst that we also have a couple of galleries across the mall where we have people who have ad hoc events, such as car shows.
A couple of years ago we finished our covered parking space where we have the capability to host events as well.
We have also started some outdoor activities as we recently introduced a go-cart area.
Outside the shopping experience, we want a person to come with his/her family because we have a kiddies’ area as well.
Who were some of your first tenants, and are you still with them today?
The first one is Game; you cannot mention Game City without Game who we have enjoyed their tenancy over the years.
We have also boasted local entrepreneurs as we have a couple of units occupied by the likes of Lock City and hair salons.
We have enjoyed support from the banking institutions too.
In the future, what can a shopper expect from Game City?
Game City prides itself on being Botswana’s biggest shopping mall.
We consider ourselves a super mall and we cannot compete with anyone in the country.
For example, we have about 65, 000 square metres of lettable area.
Which mall in the country has that?
Nonetheless, we are excited by the level at which Game City is growing as there is going to be a lot of activity in terms of the outfits that we bring to the mall as we expand.
We are trendsetters and are excited to say ‘lookout and stay tuned!’
How has Game City maintained its occupancy levels over the years?
God has been good to us at Game City as we have always maintained an occupancy level of above 95 percent.
I always tell our tenants that we have a list of people who are waiting for other tenants’ departure so that they can move in.
We have different themed sections for the mall.
There is a banking hall, food court, and retail section, so occupancy has been exciting for us over the years.
Lastly, Black Friday is here – what special arrangements do you have in place since this year it comes at a time when there is a pandemic?
We have ensured that our tenants adhere to the Covid-19 regulations.
As a way to avoid congestion, most of the shops have been running their Black Friday specials for the whole of November.
