For decades our oceans have fuelled the backbone of our economies. Large cargo ships carrying thousands of shipping containers, meeting the global supply and demand. These shipping containers, once they reach the end of their lifetime, are discarded despite their usable condition. At WolfPack we aim to give new life to these containers and create meaningful spaces or empower businesses. Take the humble Spaza Shop, a common feature on the rustic roads of Africa; an entrepreneur staking his claim. The benefits of using a retail container for this sole proprietor are numerous:

• More cost effective than a traditional brick and mortar shop;
• Instant setup – the container is placed and the owner can operate straight away;
• Steel structure for improved weather resistance;
• Steel structure for increased security and theft prevention, lock and go;
• Easy to move or relocate as a shipping container;
• Fire-resistant and water-proof;

Box Park Shopping Center

In the leafy suburbs of Melville sits a funky new shopping center, 27Boxes.  The development is designed around a park, beautifully incorporating recycled shipping containers into the urban landscape. A first of its kind in South Africa, 27Boxes was inspired by the hugely successful BoxPark in London and The George Pompidou Center in Paris. The space offers an indoor/outdoor lifestyle and retail experience, an exciting mix of permanent and pop-up stores delivering an engaging platform to showcase designers, artists and craftsmen.

At 14 m2 of commercial space, each of the 78 shops at 27 Boxes is just the right size to avoid excessive rent costs. With this in mind, renting the units are perfectly suited for entrepreneurs or artist – ranging between R1 600 and R2 000 a month - several times lower than you would except at a regular shopping center. Relatively smaller spaces at highly competitive price, thanks to minimal upfront investment for the center managers, providing an economically efficient platform for a range of businesses to make their mark. Artisans, Artists, Entrepreneurs and Small-to-medium Enterprises (SME’s) are given the right mix of commercial space versus cost, supporting growing economies like South Africa.