New Office & Retail Outlet for Steelmate Investments

Recently Steelmate Investments has opened their fourth and newest branch at 706 Gleneagles Road in Willowvale near the junction with High Glen Road. If you’re driving along Gleneagles, it’s very clearly visible. It’s an imposing double storey building painted in a dramatic dark grey colour, similar to the grey Chromadek sheeting used for their warehouse. There are bright orange frames around the doors and windows that really help to identify the building and make it stand out from the surroundings. The main building accommodates the reception, sales, management and administration offices.

Adjacent to the main building, and also clearly visible from the road, is their huge dark grey coloured warehouse with a high double peaked roof. The warehouse also has a big ‘Steelmate’ logo outlined in orange that includes their trademark icon of a man carrying a steel bar. The roof peaks of the warehouse are even higher than main building so you really can’t miss it.

The new branch is their fourth outlet in Harare. Their first branch was opened at Gate no 8, Magaba Home Industries, in Mbare in 2015. It proved so successful that two years later they opened a second branch, also in Mbare, at 1 Esterman Place, Magaba. As the company continued to expand and grow Steelmate found that their existing premises were too small to allow them to serve their customers’ needs and in addition access for bigger collection and delivery trucks was a little awkward having to deal with the traffic congestion in the area.

Initially supplying steel products to the home industries, through friendly service, sound technical advice for their customers, and the most competitive prices, Steelmate Investments soon became the preferred steel suppliers for a wide and diverse customer base. Their clients now include consumers from various sectors of the economy including the agricultural sector, mining, engineering, manufacturing, construction and even other steel retailers.

However, at all their branches, they continue to supply smaller quantities for individual customers.

Following on from the remarkable success of their first two branches, and in order to serve their customers better, they opened their third branch at 346 Affirmative Way in Willowvale in 2020. The branch at Affirmative Way is conveniently situated close to a number of major industries in the surrounding area.

The offices and warehouse were custom designed to suit their needs and the design proved to work so well that they’ve more or less duplicated it for their new branch. The Gleneagles branch provides easier access for some customers as it’s along a main road, while the other branches are not so easy or convenient to get to.

The additional warehouse at Gleneagles has enabled Steelmate to vastly increase the amount of stock that they carry as well as to accommodate more machinery for rolling roof sheets and for cutting and bending. They now carry over 400 different lines including flat bars, square bars, deformed bars, angles, pipes and tubes, sheets, plates and expanded metal, as well as a variety of wire and mesh – in fact just about every type of steel you could ever need. Of particular interest is their range of Q-tiles which are becoming increasing popular with architects, designers and home owners. Q-tiles are manufactured on site to the customer’s requirements and are basically Chromadek or IBR sheets designed to look like conventional roofing tiles. The advantage is that they look good but are much lighter and more durable than traditional roof tiles.

TURNING YOUR DREAMS INTO REALITY

3D design fitted kitchens. built-in and fitted wardrobes sliding doors wardrobes all ceilings types. office partitioning shop fitting shower cubics fittings interior and exterior door fittings tiling and many more.

No 81 Melfort Ruwa, Hre. 15 Telford Graniteside, Hre magmatinvestments19@gmail.com

+263 772 678 887

+263 732 678 887

Charisma Interior Solutions @charismainteri2

So from fairly humble beginnings in 2015 in just 8 years Steelmate has rapidly grown to become leading suppliers in the steel business and they now employ over 100 people across their four branches.

The new branch has ample, safe parking for customers and the paved forecourt also provides easy access for bigger vehicles. The warehouse has two large roller shutter doors for easy loading and unloading. There are large roof covers over the loading bay doors so goods can be loaded or unloaded in any weather. In addition there are two 5 tonne overhead cranes to make loading even easier and quicker. Inside the warehouse the high roof has numerous skylights so there’s loads of natural light making it feel bright, airy, clean and well organised.

Apart from selling steel Steelmate offers customers expert advice on what materials are best suited for their particular job, ensuring that you always get the right product, whether for engineering, manufacturing or construction. Steelmate Investments pride themselves on the fact that for them no order is too small or too big, and every customer receives the best possible service.

Steelmate Investments is a wholly Zimbabwean owned company led by Mr Clive Chisenye and Mr Edmond Chiduro who between them have more than 20 years of shared experience in the steel retailing business.

Steelmate Project Suppliers:

• Union Hardware

• Hoffel Construction Services

• Sabola

• Soltam Steel

• Architectual Aluminium

• Aluminium Systems

• Switchgate Technologies

• Homestyle Bricks

• Union Hardware

• Great Pack Electrical

• Khaya Cement

• Tv Sales And Hire

• Saintford Ventures

• Patrid Investments

• Proplastics

• Fawcett Security

• Electrosales

• Strawberry Print

• Leisure Lifestyles

• Ascend Concrete

• Royal Furniture

• Genking Power Services

• Bluetek

• Pro Air

• Skillmate Investments

• Charlode Electronic

• Conteast Cables

• Realsky Freight Logistics

• Roadworld

• Umsec

• Lamasat

• Weixi Mining Inv

...building your dreams

Text by Perry Kaande

Photos by Fotohaus

Whether you are a first time buyer or experienced seller, the process of buying or selling a property is challenging. The good news is that, there is a realtor that you can depend on. While some people are building castles in the air, Oasis Realty is committed to ‘building your dreams’.

Managing director Lawrence Rimayi indicates that Oasis Realty prides itself in professionalism, market knowledge and resourcefulness and strives to do things differently in the property market. He notes that in some instances when the company gets properties for management, at times these may not be appealing and not in a rentable state.

“If the owner is willing, we can inject our own resources and refurbish the property until it gets to such a position where it is fresh looking and rentable. We then put it on the market and it starts generating income, which would not have happened if the property was rented in its original state. Most estate agents would prefer that the owner of the property injects their own capital. We want to grow together with the property owners so we are prepared to risk our own capital,” he points out.

When owners want to sell their properties, Lawrence highlights that Oasis Realty, upon evaluation may advise that it is refurbished or renovated to increase its value. He added that the company would proffer advice “and if the client is willing, we inject our capital and then recover it when we have sold the property”.

When looking for suitable tenants for landlords, the company undertakes vetting exercises. Reference and credit checks are carried out on prospective tenants. Oasis Realty also checks if the prospect has had any previous challenges in paying their debts. Only a few estate agents do so.

The agency also goes the extra mile by visiting the sites where potential clients have previously lived or operated their business. This is done to determine how the property was being taken care of. The Zimbabwean economy is largely informal and it is difficult for some people to produce payslips. In this case Oasis will reach out to see where the business operations are and the status. Lawrence notes that leases are generally for one year so it is a problem to put someone on a property and thereafter they start defaulting on rentals, saying it will “come back to bite us”.

One of the critical issues in real estate is ‘location, location, location’. Oasis conducts virtual tours through video conferencing using platforms such as Zoom and WhatsApp. Videos and pictures are also available on the Oasis Realty online portal and can also be sent to customers. The location can be attached and potential clients can view satellite images of the real estate.

There are many aspects of the real estate sector, but the key lies in understanding the client’s desires. On the aspect of financial flexibility the principal registered estate agent noted payment terms are dependent on client expectations.

Services Offered

• Property Brokerage

• Property Management

• Facilities Management

• Letting

• Property Auctioneering

• Property Valuations & Market Appraisal

• Lease Renewal Negotiations, Retail Leasing and Consulting

• Vacant Space Management

• Town Planning Consultancy Services & Intelligence Services

• Due Diligence for Property Acquisitions & Property Development Appraisals

“At the moment most of our product is third party, we are selling on behalf of property owners or renting properties on behalf of other individuals or institutions, so, it really depends on who is selling and what are their expectations. Most sellers are not so keen on offering long payment terms, so it really depends on the client we are representing,” he says.

He notes that the Zimbabwean real estate market is “quite promising”. He indicated that there has been a lag in real developments over the past 30 years. As a result the supply side is constrained. “That’s why you find that the few new developments that are there on the market are deemed to be too pricey,” he adds.

The opportunities for individuals to takeup properties is hindered the by the fact that mortgage financing is almost nonexistent. The few banks that are offering the facility are requesting for very short repayment periods such as three years as opposed to previous spans of 15 to 25 years.

In the post COVID- 19 era, rentals have been firming and there is confidence in the market coupled with heightened demand for quality rental property. A lot of properties, especially in the upmarket suburbs are densifying. This has seen the rise of cluster and multiple storey accommodation. This technically puts amenities such as sewer and water reticulation under pressure. He notes that offsite complimentary services are required and these can be provided by the city fathers, which can also be a source of income for the municipalities.

Lawrence has 14 years of experience in the real estate sector and has worked for various agencies. Oasis Realty was incubated in 2018 and began operations in February 2019. It started off with a rental portfolio of eight properties. It has grown to 48 and is expected to surpass 100 by year end. The staff complement has also grown from the initial three to the current team of 11.

The company boasts of a blend of experienced staffers and young employees that bring in zeal and vibrancy.

Lawrence says unlike in the past where real estate practitioners simply obtained a diploma from the Real Estate Institute of Zimbabwe (REIZ), the youthful employees have degrees in real estate from various universities. Coming into the industry from university they bring in new ideas that are different from what traditionally has been done in the real estate sector.

Address: 4 Turnagaine Lane

Borrowdale, Harare

Contact Number: (024) 2886560, +263 772 625 467

E-mail: admin@oasisrealty.co.zw

Website: www.oasisrealty.co.zw