A corporate client owning 10 hectares of land in Harare has been guided toward developing an agro-based shopping mall on the property, following a comprehensive market survey and analysis conducted by Felymas Consultants.
According to the firm, the client had been undecided on the best use for the site, weighing several possible development options, including a truck inn, a conventional shopping mall, an industrial warehouse cluster, an agro-based shopping mall, or subdividing the land into residential or industrial stands. Faced with this range of choices, the client engaged Felymas Consultants to determine which option would deliver the strongest outcome for the property.
Operating under its guiding principle, “If you own land, you own gold,” the firm carried out a detailed market survey to inform the decision. The research process involved distributing 70 detailed questionnaires and conducting 10 in-depth qualitative interviews, combining quantitative and qualitative data to build a rounded picture of demand and viability across the various development options under consideration.
The findings pointed conclusively to an agro-based shopping mall as the highest and best use for the site. Felymas Consultants said the client was highly satisfied with the results, which were compiled into a comprehensive 72-page report detailing the research process, findings and recommendations. The survey will now directly inform the architectural design phase of the project, giving the design team a clear, evidence-based brief to work from as plans for the development move forward.
The case illustrates the role market research plays in large-scale property development decisions, particularly for landowners weighing multiple, often very different, uses for a single parcel of land. Choices such as those faced by this client, between commercial retail, industrial use, transport infrastructure or residential subdivision, carry significant long-term implications, making upfront research a critical step in reducing the risk of misallocated investment.
An agro-based shopping mall, combining retail space with an agricultural or produce-focused offering, reflects a development concept that has gained traction in various markets as a way to serve both urban consumers and the agricultural value chain within a single commercial format. For Harare, where land use decisions on undeveloped parcels increasingly weigh commercial, industrial and residential demand against one another, this kind of data-driven approach offers a model for how landowners can arrive at development decisions grounded in market evidence rather than assumption.
Felymas Consultants has positioned itself as a resource for landowners and developers facing similar decisions, inviting those grappling with comparable development challenges to engage the firm’s services as they weigh the best use for their own land holdings.
