Tuesday, April 29, 2008
The Palms Shopping Centre, Lekki, Lagos
The Palms Shopping Mall
The Palms is a shopping and entertainment mall is located on the Lekki-Epe Expressway, close to Victoria Island Extension, Lagos. It is the first and largest center of its kind in Nigeria and comparable to shopping centers anywhere in the world, providing an international standard shopping and cinema experience to Lagos. The Palms occupies a 44,000m2 site with a parking facility for approximately 720 vehicles. The Palms is based on the “one-stop shopping” concept. It presents the convenience and unique experience of retail, leisure, entertainment, movies, games and health. There are at least, 62 shops of varying size and design which include electronics shops, boutiques, cosmetics shops, hairdressing salons, restaurants, gifts shops and several automatic teller machines (ATMs).The main stores in the Palms Mall are South African brands Game, Shoprite and Nu Metro.
Game, a subsidiary of Massmart, is a discount retail chain that offers customers products ranging from household electronics to jewelries and beauty products. You can download a weekly price list of electonics and home appliances here.Shoprite is a huge grocery store whose variety of products includes canned vegetables, canned fruits, canned fish and meats, drinks, cereals, pet foods, fresh fruits and vegetables. Its stock also includes general merchandise, health and beauty products such as baby products, house wares, cosmetics and sanitary products.
Nu Metro comprises a six screen cinema complex and a multimedia store for books, magazines, DVD’s and music.
The different shops in The Palm shopping mall with their telephone numbers are listed below:
Arts & Antiques
Signature Art Gallery 01-8783898, 08033336091
Banks & Agencies
Diamond Bank 01-2714506-8
ETB 01-2703271-2
FCMB 01-7616626
Skye Bank Plc 01-2714500, 01-2714501
Standard Chartered Bank 01-2702145-6
Union Bank Plc 01-2719205-6, 08033063248
Books & Stationery
This Day Media Store 08057365061, 08075209038
Nu Metro Media Store 01-7615395, 01-8131267
Department Store & Supermarket
Game 01-2806000
Shoprite 01-2714481-4
Entertainment
Lets Go Bowling
Nu Metro Cinema 01-7615395
Electronics, Computer and Appliances
Chigo 01-7613414
PC Outlet 01-2714100, 012714200, 01-4444508-9
Buyright 01-2714514-5
Sound Centre 01-2714498
Vision & Soul 01-7919850, 01-7624501, 08055099098, 08055099093
Woodstock Electronics 01-7731185, 01-4702951, 01-2672370
Fashion & Accessories
Box Office 08033436256, 01-7741588, 01-7640770
Formula 01-7631674
Fundermentals 01-2714503
Hangers & Kicks 01-7602622, 01-7401527
Kidz Country 01-7611446
L’accessorie Collezioni 01-7610330
Oycog 01-8979336
Phenomenon 01-4444526, 08028357084
House of Diva 01-8750940
Tiffany Amber 01-7610720
Twice as Nice 01-8929934
Wrangler 01-2714504
Fast Food, Restaurants & Cafes
Caffe Vergnano 1882 01-7751240
George’s Kitchen 01-2711931
Jenny’s Café 01-7751654, 08027875297
La Creperie 01-2714499, 08023121893
Mario’s Pizza & Fast Food 01-8708000, 07-7614444, 01-4444333
Nandos 01-2714505
Newscafe 01-8722847
Halchiz 01-7755144
Nubites 01-2714511, 01-7609089
The Soul Lounge 08033775643, 08032030512
On the Run 08035951501
Café Fino
Gifts & Flowers Greetings 01-7769943
Party Perfect 01-8745281
Splendour 01-7611488
Health & Beauty
Essenza 01-8506580
Health Plus 01-2714496, 08028025810
MedPlus 01-4700975, 01-2711822/3
Visions 01-7643015, 08034738556
Montaigne Place 01-8517774
Wen Cosmetics 01-7936850, 08037860176
Homeware CMC Interiors 01-8502012
Lighthouse 01-2714516-7
Locks & Switches 01-2708980
Roca 01-2714476-7
Jewellery
Bola 3 01-2714471, 0802573606
The Gems 01-2714474, 08053091586
Polo Limited 01-7735343, 01-79175272
Telecoms, Photography & Audiovisual
Celtel 08022222842, 08022227011
Glomobile 08055573025
Konica Photo 08037277456, 08060105356
Motorola 01-7638801-2
MTN connect 08032038270
Nokia Store 01-2714518
Starcomms 01-8764020
Lagos Today.
Lagos today is regarded as Africa’s largest metropolis, which isn’t surprising considering its close to twenty million population, its rapidly developing structure and its streets flowing with life 24/7.
Lagos, with its African rhythms rising from every corner, the unusual human landscapes that surround you on all sides, and its definitely not-to-be-missed market places, sits on one of the world’s most mysterious continents.
It must be said however that this city differs slightly from the image of Africa most people carry around in their minds. The sheer density of traffic in the street, for example, will shock most newcomers, and seeing traditional market places side by side with giant outdoor shopping strips may strike those who picture an arid and under-developed Africa as strange at first.
But it is precisely this cosmopolitan atmosphere in the heart of the African continent that gives the city its own unique aesthetic.
THE PEOPLE MAKE THE CITY
Lagos has a lot in common with other very big and crowded cities: impossible traffic, large poor neighborhoods and areas where nobody should wander alone at night. When discovering Lagos we therefore recommend, for both safety and comfort, that you hire a private chauffeur through one of the hotels. This way you will also gain a reliable companion.
What’s more, you can tour the city at your leisure without being bound by a hard fast schedule. But to get a real insight into what is the heart of the city you must stroll through the people-packed narrow lanes and markets of Lagos Island, one of Africa’s most frantic and densely packed pedestrian districts and the city’s oldest quarter, and wander through its markets.
At first glance the streets appear to be one massive market. On further inspection, you soon realize that each section is selling one kind of product. The sights here include the Oba’s Palace, the National Museum and a few examples of Brazilian architecture.
Some cities become even more attractive through the people who live there, their outlook and their approach to you. Lagos is one of those cities. From street vendors to bank tellers, just about everyone here is going to be friendly.
WHAT TO SEE
One of the most attractive buildings is the National Museum on Awolowo Avenue, near Tafava Balewa Square, which is open every day. The Museum houses numerous exhibits of Nigeria’s ancient civilizations, including some famous bronze and terracotta sculptures.
Guides are available for a small fee but everything is labelled reasonably clearly so it’s easy enough to wander around by yourself. One of the most important displays is of the Benin bronze plaques that once adorned the royal palace at Benin City. At the back of the museum are a couple of craft huts selling interesting wood carvings. You can find very beautiful gift items here for your friends with a special interest in African culture.
Awolowo Avenue, where the museum is located and where you will also find all the good bookshops, is one of Lagos’s most beautiful areas. This avenue, with its fashionable boutiques and pricey restaurants, also boasts a number of embassies. If you have time, the Musical Society of Nigeria Centre (MUSON), just opposite the museum, in its well-kept gardens laid out in the style unique to West Africa is a must-see.
THE SALT AIR
It wouldn’t be right to speak of Lagos and not mention the sea. Lagos Harbor is the biggest and busiest in Africa, and hundreds of ships and tankers line up out to sea waiting to unload their cargos or be pumped full of oil at the Apapa Docks to the south of Lagos Island.
Of course, Lagos Island is not all there is to Lagos. You couldn’t be regarded as having done the city justice, for example, without seeing Ikoyi and Victoria Island. There is no noticeable border between the Lagos Island and Ikoyi except for a tangle of flyovers. Ikoyi lacks the frantic atmosphere and teeming streets of Lagos Island, but it does offer some shops and restaurants.
And the city’s most expensive and exclusive shops are also located here in southwest Ikoyi. Falomo Bridge connects Ikoyi with Victorian Island (VI for short), which is the location of many hotels, banks, offices, embassies, useful shops, and the best of Lagos’s restaurants.
Unlike Lagos Island or Awolowo Road, there’s little sense in walking around here as everything is spread out. Bar Beach is a very popular strand that runs along the south of Victoria Island parallel to Ahmadu Bello Way. Swimming is not recommended here, but you can walk along the shore and enjoy the view.
The best public beach near the city is Tarkwa Bay, a sheltered coastline where you can swim safely just six kilometers from the city center.
COLORFUL SHOPPING!
Lagos’s markets are all more colorful than the last. Strolling through Lekki Market, about nine kilometers from Victoria Island, is a favorite pastime in the city on afternoons and weekends. At the same time, you can buy beads, masks, small paintings and various items made of wood as well as fruit, vegetables and fresh fish at Ilasan Market, or Ola Fegushi.
If you bargain hard, this can be a cheaper place than other markets or shops in Lagos to buy such items. It’s actually best to go on a weekday, as prices are higher at the weekends when the tourists come. On the way back from the Market, shop at the recently completed Palms Shopping Mall and Entertainment Center, the start of a new era with its modern, 21st century
building.
A final warning before we conclude. Credit cards are accepted in very few places in Lagos, but you can easily change euros or dollars into ‘naira’, the Nigerian currency, at one of the many exchange dealers.
In short, Lagos is one of the rare African cities that offers visitors both a modern holiday and an experience unique to West Africa, an alternative for those who want to make the acquaintance of a culture that is different from that of the continent’s other regions and from the classical notion of Africa.
Lagos is, most certainly, the business gateway to Nigeria and West Africa, a region rich in natural and cultural resources.
Lagos Today
Official Grand Opening for Game Lagos discount megastore
Game Lagos - Nigeria’s first discount retailer of household goods and general merchandise and one of 69 on the African continent – celebrated its official grand opening in the new Palms shopping centre on Lekki Peninsular, Victoria Island on 25 May 2006.
Her Excellency the First Lady Chief (Mrs) Oluremi Tinubu, wife of the Executive Governor of Lagos State, was invited to attend the event as principal guest of honour. She cut the ribbon to declare the store officially open and presented a Game donation of N400 000 (R20 000) to four charities of her choice to mark the occasion.
With 25 000 products on offer for Lagos consumers and a projected investment in Nigeria of US$126 million (R853 million) over the next ten years, Game is set to become a vigorous participant in the local economy.
Nigerian consumers have already had a taste of the unique Game shopping experience in the 4500m² mega store - with its wide aisles, bright lighting and efficient air conditioning - since it opened its doors in December 2005.
What is not generally known is that Game offers a trio of unique guarantees for shoppers which have earned the store the loyalty of customers across Africa.
Said Fanus Nothnagel, Game managing director, ‘In a nutshell, if you find the product cheaper somewhere else, we’ll beat that price; if you change your mind about a purchase, we’ll exchange it; and if any equipment you have bought at the store is not working, we’ll repair or exchange it.’
This is what sets Game apart from other stores, along with our popular gift registries for weddings and special occasions, and our pensioners’ day on Wednesdays when shoppers over the age of 60 qualify for a 10% discount on purchases up to N20 000 (R1000). We are proud of our excellent in-store and after-sales service and invite shoppers to experience this for themselves.’
Dozens of unbeatable special offers were a feature of the grand opening across the product range of major domestic appliances, high-tech sound and audio equipment, toys, linen, sporting goods, interior décor, outdoor products and household items of all descriptions.
Job creation is a major feature of the new store which provides employment for 140 people under experienced store manager, Saga Moodley. Of this, 60 are permanent, with just five being expatriates, and 80 are part-time. The group also offers attractive training and development opportunities for staff.
Over and above Game’s projected direct investment of US$126 million in the Nigerian economy over the next ten years – in premises, establishment costs, import duties, VAT and salaries – the company has established supply-chain networks with a number of Nigerian companies and is constantly looking for more local suppliers.
We stock locally manufactured products wherever possible and expect to purchase up to US$ 6.6 million (R44.6 million) from Nigerian suppliers over the next 12 months,’ said Nothnagel. ‘We have more than 60 local vendors registered on our suppliers list - for health and beauty products, confectionery, stationery, indoor and outdoor furniture, cleaning and security services, printing of advertising leaflets and other items - and are adding to this list all the time.’
The N400 000 donation to charity is part of Game’s extensive social investment programme which aims to empower under-privileged people in surrounding communities, particularly through education and early childhood development.
The four charities selected by Her Excellency the First Lady Chief (Mrs) Oluremi Tinubu are: Junior Boys Approved School (Yaba), Girl’s Remand Home (Idi-Araba), Girls Approved School (Idi-Araba) and the Children Transit Home (Idi-Araba).
We are serious about becoming responsible corporate citizens of Nigeria,’ Nothnagel said. ’The opening of our Lagos store is the first step towards achieving what we hope will be a sustainable, win-win partnership with the people of Nigeria.’
Game, a member of the South African-based Massmart Holdings retail group, operates 69 stores in eight countries and plans to expand its trading footprint into three more African countries in the next ten months.
