Abuja – Scores of FCT residents on Thursday thronged the newly constructed Abuja’s largest shopping centre, Jabi Lake Mall for shopping extravaganza.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the mall which derives its name from its location at the waterfront of Jabi Lake officially opens for business on Thursday.
The mall has two tenants, Shoprite and Game, a subsidiary of Walmart.
Some of the shoppers who spoke to NAN said they heard the announcement of its opening on radio and television.
“The management of Shoprite has been running announcement informing the public of their intention to cut down prices as one of the reasons for opening the mall.
“The mall has quality and beautiful goods no doubt but as usual with Abuja prices, they are on the high side,’’Mrs Alice Ucheh one of the shoppers told NAN.
Another shopper, Salihu Bello, said he was curious to see the complex and compare the variety of products on display.
“I have gone round the shops and I can tell you that the products here are available in other shopping outlets in the city.
“In spite of the fact that the prices are on the high side, I will pick one or two things for my wife and daughter.
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“But the mall is quite beautiful; it will add to the landmarks in the city,’’ Bello told NAN.
NAN reports that the management gave free products to some customers who patronise the mall on Thursday.
A popular soft drink company was seen giving away feeding bottles and crayon to customers who bought six bottles of their products at reduced price.
Buyers took advantage of the gifts to purchase many crates of soft drinks.
Job seekers, who thronged the mall to submit their resume for employment, were told that recruitment process and training of staff had been concluded.
A top management staff, a South African, who preferred anonymity, told NAN that job vacancies were advertised in Nigerian newspapers.
“We have procedures for recruiting people; before this place was opened, we placed advert and recruitment was done.
“Successful applicants were trained for six months; we cannot just recruit anybody,’ he said.
The mall which construction started recently sits on 48,000 square metres of land and could boost of 30,000 square metres of lettable space.
The mall, touted as the largest in the country with an estimated construction cost of $100 million, was developed as a joint venture project between Actis Nigeria and Duval Properties.
An international private equity investment firm, Actis, is the foremost investor in retail centres in Nigeria and was the promoter of Ikeja City Mall and The Palms which it exited recently. (NAN)
