News / National
Bulawayo malls deserted
12 Sep 2024 at 07:13hrs | Views
Nokulunga Mlalazi, an airtime vendor at Nkulumane Complex in Bulawayo for over two decades, has witnessed the decline of this once-bustling shopping center.
Built in the late 1990s by Old Mutual, the complex initially thrived with diverse businesses, including supermarkets and colleges. However, many tenants have since left, leaving half of the shops vacant.
Mlalazi recalls a time when residents relied on the complex for their shopping needs, but today, only a few businesses, like Choppies Supermarket, remain.
Nkulumane Complex is just one of several underutilized buildings in Bulawayo, alongside the Fidelity Building and the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) Building, which have also struggled to retain tenants.
Businesses are increasingly relocating to more affordable spaces on the outskirts of the city center, converting homes into offices.
Egodini taxi rank is also underutilized, as vendors and kombi drivers desert the new facility due to high fees and competition from informal operators. Vendors face difficulties making a profit, and kombi drivers complain about pirate taxis diverting passengers.
Built in the late 1990s by Old Mutual, the complex initially thrived with diverse businesses, including supermarkets and colleges. However, many tenants have since left, leaving half of the shops vacant.
Mlalazi recalls a time when residents relied on the complex for their shopping needs, but today, only a few businesses, like Choppies Supermarket, remain.
Nkulumane Complex is just one of several underutilized buildings in Bulawayo, alongside the Fidelity Building and the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) Building, which have also struggled to retain tenants.
Businesses are increasingly relocating to more affordable spaces on the outskirts of the city center, converting homes into offices.
Egodini taxi rank is also underutilized, as vendors and kombi drivers desert the new facility due to high fees and competition from informal operators. Vendors face difficulties making a profit, and kombi drivers complain about pirate taxis diverting passengers.
Source - The Chronicle
