Property

Popular shopping mall in South Africa officially sold for R478 million

Luke Fraser

 ·30 Jan 2026

Dipula has formally taken over Protea Gardens Mall in Soweto, Johannesburg, with the deal going through earlier this month.

Dipula is a JSE-listed REIT, with roughly 70% of its income coming from defensively positioned retail properties, including shopping centres in townships and in rural and urban convenience nodes.

In August 2025, Dipula announced a series of acquisitions in line with its goal to expand its portfolio by adding well-located, high-quality industrial and convenience, township, and rural retail assets.

Dipula has now advised shareholders that the transfer of these properties has taken place, which includes Protea Gardens Mall, which went through on 8 January 2025.

Protea Gardens Mall in Soweto is a 24,000 sqm mall, which is anchored by national retailers including Shoprite, Boxer and Cashbuild, as well as several fashion retailers.

The mall boasts over 70% national tenant occupancy, which Dipula previously said indicates income durability. 

“Protea Gardens Mall is an excellent strategic fit for Dipula with embedded growth and value unlock potential, underpinned by quality tenants and a growing consumer market,” said Izak Petersen, CEO of Dipula Properties, in August.

The group noted that the acquisition also supports Dipula’s strategic goal of growing its exposure to its targeted retail markets.

On top of the acquisition of Protea Gardens Mall, Dipula also acquired Woolworths Gezina, which is adjacent to Dipula’s Gezina Galleries in Pretoria and is now incorporated into the larger mall.

The transfer of the 4,600 sqm Woolworths Gezina went through on 19 December 2025, which expands Gezina Galleries GLA to 20,000 sqm.

The company now also has control over two industrial properties, including the nearly 7,000 sqm Airborne Industrial Park, located near OR Tambo International Airport, transferred on 27 August 2025.

The group also acquired the Bayer Distribution Centre in Klerksdorp, which covers over 16,000 sqm, with the transfer going through on 8 December.

Abland DC is a modern logistics development spanning more than 16,000 sqm, which it said has a strong tenant covenant on a long-term lease.

Trading update

Dipula also released a trading update for the period, with all retail categories, except services and hardware, reporting above-inflation turnover growth of 3% to 11%.

The most substantial growth was recorded in the cellular and electronics categories, while the services turnover dropped slightly by 2%.

On a provincial basis, the highest turnover growth was achieved in KZN and the Eastern Cape, at 10% and 8%, respectively.

Limpopo recorded turnover growth of 6%, North-West 4%, Gauteng and the Free State 3% each and Mpumalanga a decline of 1.5%.

Turnover at Dipula’s urban convenience and rural centres increased by 6%, while turnover at urban township centres grew by 3%.

The strongest sales performance for the quarter was also recorded in November 2025, as customers now appear to be doing earlier festive-season shopping than previously the norm.

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