Did you get your invite? MyZA

Wildfires, floods and construction industry strikes have come and gone, but the R1.7-billion Baywest Mall in Port Elizabeth remains on track to open its doors in early 2015.

To celebrate, developers of the 87,500m² super-regional mall Abacus Asset Management and Billion Group will throw a launch party this Thursday to thank the stakeholders who have been involved in making the development a reality.

Set in a giant marquee tent on the mall’s site along the N2 in Hunters Retreat, local SMMEs have also been roped in to help with the celebrations. Radio personality Buli G will emcee while acclaimed Port Elizabeth jazz quintet Mo Jazz will entertain guests, who include top officials such as Bay mayor Ben Fihle, as well as business leaders from top companies around South Africa.

Baywest MD Gavin Blows said the event was being held to celebrate the Bay community and its importance to the project.

“The Baywest development has been positively received by the Nelson Mandela Bay community, thanks to developers’ efforts to work closely with community members on the project,” said Blows.

“Baywest is set to have an extremely positive long-term effect not only on the construction industry in the province, but also on other sectors such as tourism and retail. Over the next 15 to 20 years, Baywest City will grow into a R6-billion development.

“It will be to the Eastern Cape what Canal Walk is to Cape Town or what Sandton is to Johannesburg. It will be a massive attraction for Eastern Cape residents, as well as a major draw card for national and international visitors, in the meantime injecting much-needed jobs and income into the local economy.”

While the size of the mall has seen major national tenants sign up for stores which will be larger and carry more variety than has been the case until now in the province, Blows said Baywest was also looking for smaller boutique stores and local enterprises to populate the mall.

The launch party also marks the launch of the Baywest social media and “Expect BIG things” marketing campaign.

One small business involved in the launch party is that of registered crafter John Savhiya, who has manned his trading post along Main Road Walmer for the past eight years. Savhiya is helping craft a mystery gift for party attendees.

“It’s being involved in projects like this, where there are big orders, which help businesses like mine,” Savhiya said. “Word of mouth means a lot to small businesses like mine.”

The development of the mall is part of the first phase of the development of Baywest City, which is set to be rolled out over the next 15 to 20 years. The mall alone is creating about 3,000 direct jobs, many of them from Nelson Mandela Bay. A further 7,000 indirect and induced jobs will be created.

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