Truworths has entered into a deal with property developer and manager, Atterbury, at King Air Industria, in Matroosfontein, near Cape Town International Airport, for a new development sized at 53,000m2. Atterbury will create a world-class distribution facility for the retailer, which has been a long-standing SA business for decades.
The deal, which was initiated by Epping Property, is a vote of confidence in SA’s high-end logistics sector and the country’s economy. It will rival the likes of Massmart’s 60,000m2 distribution facility in Brackengate, Western Cape. Massmart is set to de-list from the JSE having decided it couldn’t justify the benefits vs the costs of maintaining a listing on the main bourse.
The distribution facility will cost north of R450m to build, excluding tenant installations. It will be a key hub for Truworths International, a Cape-based company which sells apparel across SA, Africa and online. It has more than 790 stores across the African continent and also owns a British brand called Office which has 129 stores.
Turworths also has concessions in the UK, Germany and the Republic of Ireland, together with a fast-growing online presence.
Atterbury explained that the distribution facility’s 53,000m2 could be seen as an initial phase consisting of a 3,000m2 office and 50,000m2 warehouse. It included the option to be expanded to 70,000m2.
Atterbury has said that the location and accessibility of King Air will attract similar deals to the Truworths deal in the future.
King Air Industria is 72ha in size and offers on-site infrastructure and around-the-clock security features for high-performance businesses. It houses The Courier Guy operating in a 10,112m2 turnkey facility, and Morgan Cargo in a 7,500m2 provincial head office building that also includes a specialised cold storage facility.
Do Truworths own the warehouses they occupy presently ?