For years Shoprite Checkers and Game were virtually neighbours in the Mthatha Plaza, two anchor tenants peacefully sharing the mall’s shoppers between them. But now these neighbours are squaring up against each other in court, with their landlord, Whirlprops, brought along for the ride.Their dispute concerns the right, granted to Shoprite by Whirlprops in a 2005 lease, to be the mall’s sole supermarket. Their contract said no other part of the plaza would be used as a butchery, bakery or fruit and vegetable shop.Then came FoodCo, Game’s in-house fresh-food offering and its great hope for improved profitability. Once Game began introducing FoodCo in selected stores, the Mthatha branch negotiated a new lease with Whirlprops. Their February 2016 agreement lifts all previous restrictions on Game’s merchandise mix: "The tenant shall use the premises for ... a Game retail business ... dealing in general merchandise of all types and food. [Game] may, in its sole discretion, determine what ...
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