Driving through Kempton Park industrial area in Johannesburg, I did a double-take when I saw a “TO LET” board in Mandarin. Random? Not even close. It’s smart, targeted marketing.
If you've been anywhere near South African industrial property lately, you'll know what's happening: Chinese-owned businesses are booming. They're signing major leases, importing on a large scale, and driving demand for big-format retail and warehousing.
Just look at Value Co and Panda Store occupying tens of thousands of square metres. The Fourways Mall Value Co. has escalators inside. And with Shein and Temu shaking up e-commerce, the demand for fulfilment space is surging.
It's not just in real estate. Chinese vehicles like Chery, Haval, and BYD are everywhere. Mandarin is the most spoken language on the planet, and China is South Africa's largest trading partner. So yes, a TO LET board in Mandarin? It's undeniably clever marketing.
Inospace is the company behind the sign. With branded logistics parks across the country, they’ve created a national network for SMEs that combines warehousing, storage, workspace, and logistics in a single, branded ecosystem. Their brand is extremely easy to remember with that bright red circle signage you see in industrial areas.
I have always been fascinated by Inospace’s journey in the South African real estate industry and the founder, Rael Levitt. Rael is one of the strongest marketing minds in the business, and I have always been a fan of his knack for brand building. In the early 2000s, he pioneered many of the innovations that are now standard in the auction world, including multi-property auctions and large-scale commercial rollouts. Then he built Inospace into a multi-billion-rand business by selling space as a service to SMEs.
If Donald Trump wants to smother South African trade with tariffs, this is how you respond: by speaking directly to your new economy tenants. And in their language.
For those wondering what the board says, check the comments of this post.