Mall of Africa(Provided/Balwin Properties)
- Balwin Properties plans to develop six padel courts at Mall of Africa, four of which will be covered.
- The padel development also features recovery facilities including a sauna, ice plunge pool and hyperbaric technology.
- Padel is the fastest growing sport in the world and SA is no exception.
- For more financial news, visit the News24 Business front page.
After a whirlwind shopping spree, why not indulge in some padel or even a sauna or cold plunge?
Now, customers at Mall of Africa, majority-owned by Attack Properties, will soon have six rooftop padel courts, an infrared sauna and an ice plunge pool at their disposal when they stop by for their must-have dress. become. Or groceries.
This unusual development is the brainchild of Balwin Properties' new padel division, Balwin Padel, and is being built with funding from a private consortium of investors, and will officially launch with a padel tournament in early September. It is planned.
Steve Brooks, CEO of Balwyn Properties, explained the rationale behind this latest involvement in padel development, saying padel is the fastest growing sport in the world. , said there was strong demand for courts here in SA to satisfy the public's desire for a relatively unchallenging sport.
Mr Brooks said:
“It's a very easy sport to get into. If you can hit with your right arm, the paddle bat is a pretty forgiving bat.”
Balwin previously said in a statement that padel, which was introduced in SA in late 2020, boasts more than 100,000 players nationwide through the Playtomic platform. Balwyn head of padel Sebastian Brockmann said there were 400 courts in SA and this could increase to around 2,500 courts.
Branding potential
Balwin said he recognized the strong branding and marketing potential associated with sports, with Brooks pointing to the recent example of former soccer players David Beckham and Thierry Henry teaming up on a Rays ad. I mentioned it.
The planned padel court is expected to go on sale in September this year. (Courtesy/Balwin Properties)
The planned padel court is expected to go on sale in September this year. (Courtesy/Balwin Properties)
“If you look at the world today, the whole world, especially the corporate environment and what customers are looking for, is changing rapidly. The connection with sport has become very strong.”
Mr Brooks said that even before Balwyn Padel was officially launched in November last year, when the company was set to take part in an international padel tournament with a prize pool of R375,000 at Taba Eco Lifestyle Estate. said the group had already decided to become more involved. In sports:
“And the idea was to go deeper into our community and use that as a tool to improve our marketing and be known as a developer that is more community and sports-based, rather than purely for-profit.” The goal was to make sure that the
He said this was due to the “extraordinary amount of work” on residential greening projects.
Brooks said the Mall of Africa development will open in the first week of September with the aforementioned padel tournament, and four covered courts and two outdoor courts will be available to patrons.
The development, which will be home to Balwyn Padel Club, also features recovery facilities including the latest in cryo technology, which injects liquid nitrogen to aid players' recovery, as well as an infrared sauna and ice plunge pool. Additional facilities at the Mall of Africa development will offer hyperbaric oxygen therapy.
Brooks noted that these recovery facilities will be an important centerpiece for users.
Balwin plans to roll out padel courts in other housing projects it is involved with, if space is available. By early 2025, we hope to open 21 new courts, including six that will be built at Mall of Africa.
At the end of April, four additional courts will be developed at the group's Taba Eco Lifestyle Estate in south Johannesburg, complementing the two existing courts, as well as Munyaka in Waterfall City and Isinga Smart City in Durban. Courts are also planned to open at other Balwyn developments, including and Mooikloof, Pretoria.
All of these developments have external lifestyle centers that are open to the public on a membership basis.
