Joburg's inner city has become synonymous with art and culture, and known 
for its dynamic atmosphere. It’s an area of vibrant urban growth — fertile turf for entrepreneurs, hustlers and risk-takers, with pockets of active development 
and regeneration creating havens in between the more downtrodden spaces. 

Luxury, however, isn’t the first association visitors, or locals, have with the area 
— here it’s more grit than glamour. This was the gap that Jonathan Freemantle 
and Daniel Liebmann, co-directors of The Cosmopolitan, wanted to fill. The idea was one that grew naturally from their other business, Hazard Gallery, a contemporary arts space that is part of the Arts on Main development, one of Maboneng’s first and most well-known creative complexes.

“We were increasingly being asked by people to sell their products from our upstairs boutique space — a curated area with a mix of books, fashion, and design items. It seemed there was room to develop this into something bigger, based on the feedback we were getting. We decided to expand on it, and look for a location for brands to coexist,” says Freemantle of the genesis of the concept.  

Freemantle and Liebmann’s transition from gallerists to property developers 
and landlords was not a premeditated move, but rather one born out of 
opportunity. When it came to finding a site for their project, they wanted 
something that spoke to the idea of luxury, lifestyle, and heritage, and set the 
tone of difference they wanted to create.

The 1899 former hotel, whose ornate façade commands the corner of Commissioner and Albrecht streets, ticked all the boxes. The actual acquisition of the building as a premises came about quite fortuitously. It had been vacant for a few years and was in the process of being earmarked by a hotel group for the purposes of turning it into a boutique hotel, but the deal fell through.

This turn of events benefited the Hazard team, who knew that, despite the abundance of sites with potential in the area, this was a one-off. Maboneng, in addition to being a seven-day-a-week neighbourhood — one that’s lived and worked in every day by locals who support the core businesses in the area — is also a destination.

For visitors and even residents of the city, it’s a day out, a taste of a different side of Joburg life away from the suburbs. It’s this quality in particular that the team wants to tap into: people looking for a unique experience, an escape.

They are quite conscious, however, of wanting to offer something different
to anything else in the vicinity — and to draw a new audience to the area. To
this end, the concept has been tailored to appeal on a number of different levels (visual, historical, lifestyle), all underpinned by the core idea of quality.
So how do they see this working? “The concentration of brands in one area
makes it a lifestyle district in itself. Then there’s the crossover between fashion,
art, food — there’s nothing like it in the area,” Liebmann says.

We have an
opportunity
to define our
own concept of
luxury, based
on a spirit of
inclusiveness

He sees the target audience being slightly different to the usual Maboneng crowd, which will draw new people to the area, benefiting the hub as a whole. “Through the tenant mix, art exhibitions, garden, cuisine, you’d be coming here for an all-encompassing experience. So while we celebrate the area, the history, and the vibe, the idea of stepping off the street into this incredible old building,and into another world, is part of the appeal we wanted to create. You’re not in Maboneng, you’re in The Cosmopolitan, and this environment invites quality brands, which in turn attracts the right customers,” he adds. 

The building is a draw in itself, and it lends itself to retail and leisure by virtue of its architecture — the intimate spaces all flow easily into one another by way of passages and staircases that connect the rooms in a loop, encouraging 
exploration. One entry and one exit give it a feeling of intimacy and an old-world sense of occasion, unlike other shopping centres. 

“I see The Cosmopolitan as being a home to luxury brands on a level 
comparable with the finest curated spaces globally,” Freemantle says. He’s 
taken note of similar projects, such as 10 Corso Como in Milan, and Dover 
Street Market in London, as well as dynamic areas, such as the 9 Streets in 
Amsterdam, in developing the concept. 

“What I feel is particularly unique is the mix of luxury and urban regeneration. 
The fact that The Cosmopolitan is like a vintage jewel amidst Johannesburg’s 
CBD makes it special. Then, the nature of the space is such that each brand that joins us becomes part of a family. That, paired with a world-class restaurant in Cube Tasting Kitchen, and a garden designed by Patrick Watson, the country’s leading landscaper, make the building somewhere a discerning shopper would want to come.” 

With all this attention paid to getting the right people involved, it was imperative that the tenants all met the standards set from the start. With that in mind, Freemantle and Liebmann were conscious of choosing brands that each have their own unique selling point.

Tenants span fashion, beauty, and food; and include Yswara tea, chef Dario d’Angeli, Firebird Coffee, Crystal Birch, Black Dog Clothing, Threads Project, Malica Design, and parfumier House of Gozdawa. Malica Design’s Aimee Henning, one of the first tenants in the space, is an interior designer whose business centres on creating customised spaces using quality (often limited-edition) pieces. For her, the idea of luxury lies in uniqueness and celebrating Africa’s particular design skills and strengths.

“We’re launching a new piece of furniture in the next few months, which we’re working on with a fellow South African brand — it incorporates local craft techniques like weaving, among others,” Henning says. Swaady Martin, owner of luxury tea brand Yswara, also emphasises the African nature of her brand, as a way of setting it apart. She defines the essential African quality as humanist — inclusive, rather than exclusive.

“Of course, for something to possess the characteristics of global luxury, it needs to deliver exceptional products and experiences. But, in addition to this, we have an opportunity to define our own concept of luxury, based on this spirit of inclusiveness,” she says. 

For all the brands at The Cosmopolitan, quality is the key, and whether the 
product is European or African, its level of execution determines its status as a luxury item. But what sets the centre apart is the sense of community — in line with Freemantle’s idea of the group as a family — defining The Cosmopolitan as a place where quality meets collaboration. 

The Cosmopolitan, Corner Albrecht and Commissioner streets, Maboneng, 
thecosmopolitan.joburg

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