Vincent Park, one of South Africa’s oldest malls and one of the first in the Eastern Cape, is celebrating its 50th birthday. This is an impressive milestone that centre / portfolio manager, Joseph Parsley, says reflects the passion, people and progress that have been at its core.
The award-winning mall is located in East London. The property upon which the mall is located was once a hotel The land that housed the Vincent Hotel was purchased by Old Mutual in 1971 for redevelopment into a shopping centre. It opened with Pick ‘n Pay as the anchor tenant. Legend has it that the deal was struck and concluded on the back of a matchbox!
Vincent Park shopping centre officially opened in October 1972.
“From the beginning, the East London community has been integral to our success. By offering a relevant and fresh tenant mix, we continue to appeal to a wide range of shoppers. Through our marketing and community events, we aim to bring fun and novel experiences to the mall, and support community causes where we can. Vincent Park also supports the local economy through commerce platforms for local business owners They also foster employment opportunities for hundreds of East Londoners. A number of our tenants have been with us since day one, namely Chez Francois, Pick n Pay and Wimpy,” continued Parsley.
Since the 1970’s the centre has been developed refurbished and modernised. Today, Vincent Park boasts 37 000 sqm of trading space and over 80 tenants, including all of the major banks, South African retail brands and international fashion retailer, H&M.
The centre has moved with the retail times for five decades.
Vincent Park is surrounded by affluent residential neighbourhoods and is within 10-minutes of the city’s top schools, medical facilities, and commercial developments
“Despite increasing competition and changes in shopper spending behaviour, Vincent Park retains a loyal shopper base. Vincent Park remains relevant through continuous innovation, based on a firm understanding of both the retail industry and the local shopper and best practice trends,” Parsley explains.
He says while fashion and music changes were inevitable, the impact of social media and technology has been significant. Social media has completely changed shopper engagement. Now, the focus is on building brand awareness and affinity through results driven social media campaigns and activations.
Refurbishments have kept Vincent Park up to date with trends
Over the years, Vincent Park has also seen numerous bricks and mortar upgrades with hundreds of millions of rands in redevelopment and infrastructure development both creating jobs and changing the retail landscape.
“Vincent Park has embarked on substantial infrastructure investment over the past couple of years to bring about cost savings, energy efficiencies and the implementation of 21st century technology,” he adds.
Sustainable initiatives have been introduced.
Green initiatives include the installation of a solar plant and the addition of energy-efficient LED lighting. A chilled water plant has improved air cooling and a grey water, non-potable water project supplies toilets. In addition rainwater harvesting and landscaping uses waterwise and indigenous plants.
“From a brand perspective, we aim to stay true to this legacy and at the same time ensure that we remain current and relevant. In this sphere, Vincent Park is an industry leader, being recognised nationally through the South African Council of Shopping Centres’ annual Footprint Marketing Awards.”
“Overall, Vincent Park’s legacy and brand affinity definitely stands in its favour. East London is very community driven. Everyone knows everyone, and everyone has a memory of Vincent Park,” Parsley concludes.
We are celebrating until mid November 2022
In celebration of their 50th Birthday, Vincent Park invites East London to visit the mall and experience numerous fun photo ops and selfie spots. There are weekly Vincent Park gift card prizes up for grabs on the mall’s social media pages until mid-November 2022. They also have a big celebration planned for November 2022 and invite East Londoner’s to keep an eye on their Facebook page for details.
