Source: Harare’s micro-mall boom: How suburban homes became city’s new retail frontiers – herald
“We are not against development, but you can’t turn a whole street into a shopping centre without considering the people who live here.” — Mrs Melody Nyatanga
Emmanuel Kafe
CHECK POINT DESK
ON a quiet Borrowdale street where jacaranda petals still carpet the tarmac, shoppers now line up outside a chic nail bar tucked behind what used to be a family living room.
Next door, a once-modest cottage now hosts a craft coffee shop and a tiny Afro-fusion boutique.
For years, these were just ordinary homes.
Today, they form part of a growing wave of micro-malls — compact, multi-purpose retail clusters that are reshaping Harare’s suburban landscape.
Across the capital, from Avondale to Hillside, Greendale to Westgate, homeowners and small developers are carving out little commercial universes from former houses, corner stands and even abandoned offices.
What began as a survival tactic for a handful of property owners is fast turning into one of Harare’s most visible investment trends.
And beneath the pastel paint, string lights and handcrafted signage lies a story of economic improvisation, quiet zoning disputes and a retail culture shifting under pressure.
Forces fuelling Harare’s micro-mall explosion
While many analysts blame the boom on the country’s economy, the rise of micro-malls is driven by something far more layered than survival.
Across Harare’s suburbs, a new culture of neighbourhood retail is taking shape, powered by lifestyle shifts, diaspora influence and a quiet rejection of the city’s traditional shopping spaces.
One major force is the surge in home-grown lifestyle brands.
Young entrepreneurs — shaped by global trends from Instagram, Etsy and Nairobi’s boutique markets — prefer intimate, stylish spaces to the rigid corridors of formal malls.
A micro-mall lets them craft a personalised feel: soft lighting, curated shelves, handwritten menus and music that suits their brand.
“People want experiences, not just shops,” said a boutique owner in Milton Park.
Diaspora money is also transforming unused family homes into modern mixed-use hubs.
Many returning Zimbabweans are unwilling to let houses sit idle. They are upgrading them into contemporary retail clusters that mirror what they have seen in Johannesburg, London or Cape Town.
Their investment has quietly raised the design standards of these mini-markets — making them aspirational, not makeshift.
Then there is the post-Covid lifestyle shift.
Hararians now favour neighbourhood convenience over long commutes and crowded malls.
Remote work has made suburban cafés, salons and craft stores part of daily routines rather than weekend luxuries.
A Mount Pleasant shopper put it simply: “Why drive to town when everything is five minutes away?”
The decline of the central business district (CBD) has only accelerated the trend.
Retailers want safe parking, reliable infrastructure and predictable foot traffic — things micro-malls can guarantee far better than downtown’s congested streets and deteriorating building stock.
With outdated planning laws struggling to catch up, homeowners have seized the moment, redefining the city’s retail culture, one converted living room at a time.
Traditional malls feeling the pressure
While large malls like Sam Levy’s Village continue to draw crowds, smaller and mid-tier shopping centres are losing tenants to micro-malls that offer flexible leases and cheaper overheads.
A property consultant who works with major mall landlords, Mr Lyons Mareche, admitted the trend is “chipping away at our tenant base”.
“Small operators no longer want to be locked into high service charges and rigid tenancy rules. Micro-malls let them try an idea without bleeding capital,” he said.
For retailers, particularly artisanal brands and service-oriented businesses, the micro-mall format is a perfect fit — intimate, low pressure and community-centric.
But not everyone is celebrating.
Many of these trendy suburban malls sit in areas zoned strictly for residential use, and their rapid spread has left municipal authorities playing catch-up.
Harare Mayor Councillor Jacob Mafume admitted that “most of these conversions were done without prior approvals”.
“We are seeing a surge in commercial activities in areas that were never designated for such use. Residents complain about traffic and noise,” he said.
Some residents feel they are losing the character of their neighbourhoods.
In Highlands, a group of homeowners recently petitioned the council after a once-quiet corner house became a bustling cluster of restaurants and salons, drawing dozens of cars daily.
“We are not against development,” said Mrs Melody Nyatanga, one of the petitioners.
“But you can’t turn a whole street into a shopping centre without considering the people who live here.”
Local Government and Public Works Minister Daniel Garwe acknowledges the trend but insists it is not entirely opposed to it.
“Micro-malls reflect the entrepreneurial resilience of our citizens. However, we expect local authorities to ensure compliance with planning standards. The goal is to balance innovation with order.”
He said new guidelines for mixed-use suburban properties are being drafted — though no timelines were provided.
For many small developers, the boom is just beginning. They argue that Harare was overdue for a shift away from large, monolithic shopping centres.
“People don’t want to travel far for basics or lifestyle services,” said Mr Farai Chawasarira, a property consultant who specialises in micro-mall conversions.
“Neighbourhood retail is the future. It’s happening everywhere — Nairobi, Johannesburg, Lusaka. Harare is simply catching up.”
Mr Chawasarira says most micro-malls cost less than US$70 000 to convert from an existing structure — a fraction of what even a small conventional mall would require.
Beyond convenience and aesthetics, micro-malls are also a way to monetise Zimbabwe’s informal economy.
Many of the businesses occupying these hubs are micro-enterprises that would never afford CBD rentals or formal mall fees.
“There is a lot of cash circulating informally,” explained Mr Misheck Dambaza, an economist at a local think tank.
“These malls are tapping into that — discreetly but effectively. They keep money within communities.”
What’s next?
Urban planners warn that without proper policy direction, the city risks ending up with overcrowded suburbs and infrastructural strain — from sewer overloads to parking chaos.
But for now, the momentum is undeniable.
Drive through any leafy suburb and chances are you will spot a modest sign on a gate: studio, café, spa, market.
Behind those gates is a new kind of Harare — one built not from grand blueprints, but from everyday improvisation, hustle and imagination.
Harare is a city reinventing itself; one converted living room at a time.
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