Mitchell’s Plain – from rural farmland to shopping mecca

From its origins as a largely dormitory township 49 years ago with very little economic activity, Mitchell’s Plain has morphed into one of the fastest growing business sectors in the Cape; a shopping mecca offering a large and varied selection of stores and products at its many shopping complexes and hubs.

So, whether you are looking for mouth-watering local food and fresh produce, fashion from well-known brands or bargain deals – known by locals as “specials” – you are bound to find it either at Mitchell’s Plain’s major shopping centres, the clusters of shops situated in its residential areas or at the many stalls dotted throughout the area where roadside hawkers are known as much for their witty banter and street cries as for their products and services.

The Town Centre, which is marking its 45th anniversary this year, was the area’s first shopping centre and is still the heart of the Mitchell’s Plain Commercial Business District with formal businesses trading side by side with informal traders selling their wares in the centre as well as on the outskirts of the CBD.

The shopping district also includes a 58 000 square metre retail plaza, the Station Plaza, which is connected to the main centre by a pedestrian bridge and pedestrian access to groundfloor shops via Seventh Avenue.

These shop offerings are complemented by key shopping complexes such as the Liberty Promenade Shopping Mall, Westgate Mall, the Camissa Shopping Centre in Weltrevreden Way, which has Spar as its anchor tenant, Colorado Park Shopping Centre, Morgenster Shopping Centre, Westridge Shopping Centre, Lentegeur Shopping Centre, as well as shopping precincts in Strandfontein, Woodlands, Rocklands and Beacon Valley in addition to home-based businesses and community markets, offering shoppers variety, choice and uniquely crafted items.