Thousands of shoppers queued on Thursday at the opening of one of the largest malls in South Africa, set in middle-class suburbia between Johannesburg and Pretoria.

The Mall of Africa will house over 300 shops, including global brands such as Inditex's Zara, Hennes & Mauritz (H&M), Cotton On and Starbucks. They want to attract the rising number of young consumers in Africa's most developed economy which has thrived on demand for commodities.

Mall of Africa is co-owned by two leading South African property companies. JSE-listed real estate capital growth fund Attacq Limited holds the commercial development rights to Waterfall and owns 80% of the Mall of Africa. Atterbury Property Developments owns 20% of Mall of Africa and is responsible for the Mall of Africa development project, on behalf of Attacq.