The Westown Square shopping centre, located in Shongweni, South Africa, was developed by Fundamentum Property Group, an asset management, property development and retail leasing company.
The shopping mall is designed to provide a different retail experience with ample space for meeting and mingling among the community. It offers a diverse range of retail, entertainment, recreation and leisure activities.
Opened in March 2025, Westown Square was developed with an investment of R1.4bn ($74m). Absa Investment Bank was the primary funder for the project.
Location
Westown Square is located in Shongweni along the N3 highway between Pietermaritzburg and Durban in South Africa.
It is part of the 100-hectare (ha), or 247-acre, Westown mixed-use development, which forms the first phase of the larger 2,000ha Shongweni urban development project. The eThekwini Municipality undertook the Shongweni project to promote economic development in the outer west region of the KwaZulu Natal (KZN) province.
The Westown mixed-use development comprises several interconnected precincts that are due to be developed over a period of five to ten years. It will comprise residential and commercial activities, a logistics precinct, the West Private Hospital and other lifestyle and recreational activities within an urban environment.
Westown Square shopping centre details
The Westown Square shopping centre spans 48,500m² (522,049ft²) and features a mix of national and local retailers, covering categories such as fashion, health and beauty, food, entertainment and lifestyle.
The retail centre features a high street design that seamlessly blends indoor and outdoor spaces. It is an open, permeable and accessible space with big gardens and wide walkways that encourage social interaction and provide connection to the shopping, dining and recreational amenities.
The shopping centre features a combination of timber and steel structures along with unique landscaping details that depict the natural beauty of Shongweni’s green belt. It features densely planted shopping streets, parking lots and walkways covered with vines and pergolas, and large entrance trees.
A key feature of the shopping centre is the Barn on the Square, a central retail square displaying local brands and products, particularly those from the province. It provides a local shopping retail experience and features a permanent market-like retail space for local artisanal traders.
The Barn comprises two main levels: a lower market level and an upper level featuring high-quality restaurants and bars, some of which are locally owned and operated.
Westown Square shopping centre implemented a cashless digital parking system at the mall in September 2025. The system uses License Plate Recognition cameras to record vehicle registration numbers within the parking lanes. It enables more efficient access management and improves the customer experience from entry to exit.
Construction details
Construction of the shopping centre was undertaken along with the upgrade of Kassier Road, which supports the Westown mixed-use development.
A fleet of construction machines was used at the construction site, including a payloader, an impact roller, a static roller, a milling machine and two continuous flight auger (CFA) piling rigs.
A dynamic compaction construction technique was used to compact the soil on the shopping centre site in preparation for the bulk earthworks. A three-sided impact roller was also used to compact the soil. A CFA piling rig was used to drill the piled foundations.
The second level concrete slab of the retail centre was constructed using the coffer slab construction technique to help carry the load of the concrete slab and add strength.
The first two concrete slabs, requiring 519m³ and 600m³ of concrete, respectively, were poured in September 2023. Another concrete pour of 730m³ was completed in November 2023.
Retail, dining and entertainment offerings at Western Square
Shoprite and its group of brands occupy 10,000m² of retail space in the shopping centre.
Checkers Hyper, part of Shoprite, is the major anchor tenant occupying approximately 8,500m². It offers a wide range of groceries and general merchandise.
Some other Shoprite brands including Checkers Liquor and Petshop Science occupy the remaining space.
Pick n Pay, a South African supermarket chain that offers a variety of groceries and household products, is another tenant at Westown Square.
Edgars, a South African clothing brand owned by Retailability, has a store at Westown Square.
The Mr Price Group, a popular South African retail brand known for its fashion and homeware offerings, provides customers with access to affordable and stylish clothing and home goods.
Brazilia, Ackermans, Exact, Holmes Brothers and Jam Clothing are some of the other fashion and beauty brands available at the mall.
Home and interior décor brands include Beyond Innovation, Mr Price Home, Pep Home and Zende Handmade Creations, while speciality stores include Biltong and Boba, Case Craft, Flowers and Leaves, the Basket Studio and the Crazy Store.
Dis-Chem Pharmacy and Clicks are among the retailers at the shopping centre that offer health, beauty and pharmacy products.
Some of the dining spaces include Tigers Milk restaurant, Andrea’s Cucina Italiana, Joitas, Joops Place and Sushi Story. Fast food options include Doxa Donuts, P.K Delights, the Filthy Moustache and the Neapolitan.
Entertainment options include Total Ninja, an adventure, activity and games venue, and Virtual Reality Zone, which offers gaming and simulation facilities.
The shopping centre also features the landscaped Town Gardens, the Bowl open-air amphitheatre, children’s play areas and a maze.
Contractors involved
Westown Square is designed by a joint venture of architecture practices MDS Architecture and Boogertman + Partners. Uys & White are the landscape architects and Sculpt Spaces were the architects for the Barn.
Stefanutti Stocks, a construction company, was the main contractor for the project, while L&S Consulting Engineers was the civil and structural engineer. Erky Wood served as the urban designer.
Orion Projects was the project manager, and MLC, a quantity surveying and construction cost consulting services provider, was the quantity surveyor.
RWP Consulting Engineers was the electrical engineer, while Graeme Page Consulting Engineers was the mechanical engineer and Lotter Consulting was the fire engineer.
Vertex Engineering Consultants was the wet services engineer.
The cashless digital parking system for the mall was provided by HUB Parking Technology, a parking solutions specialist.
