• The Nintendo Store is now open in Sandton City as the first branded store in South Africa and Africa as a whole.
• This new permanent store will replace the Nintendo Switch Pop Up Zone.
• Visitors for the opening weekend can enjoy some exclusive sales.

The most recent tenant at the continually popular Sandton City shopping centre is the Nintendo Store, a new kind of outlet that is the first in both South Africa and on the continent.

Regulars at Sandton City may have visited the Nintendo Switch Pop Up Zone which, as you may have guessed by the name, was not entirely permanent despite being open for much of the time since the release of the eponymous console in 2017.

The Nintendo Switch Pop Up Zone was temporarily closed, then moved to a new location for a while, and now has been replaced entirely by the Nintendo Store which will act as the de facto physical shopping experience going forward.

We were in attendance at the grand opening of the Nintendo Store this morning as the company kicks off ceremonies for its first weekend.

This new store is located at Shop L19 which is on the fourth level of Sandton City. Those struggling to find it should head towards the food court as the Nintendo Store is right next to it.

We got to wonder the aisles of the new store and found that there is much more space compared to the Nintendo Switch Pop Up Zone. On top of that each segment of the store is neatly dedicated to specific items or brands. There’s a space for Super Mario, one for Pokémon, one for The Legend of Zelda and more. The controllers, consoles, headphones and even amiibos similarly get their own spots.

There is a lot to try out in the store so you can get your hands on some hardware or even games before making a purchase. This continues to be an unparalleled draw of the traditional brick and mortar store and that remains the same here.

Another draw is the staff who are very knowledgeable when it comes to all things Nintendo and they are very happy to help you out. Throughout our visits to the previous Nintendo Switch Pop Up Zone and now the Nintendo Store with the same staff, we can attest to the helpfulness of the employees.

More than once we’ve seen them guiding the unsure parents or even grandparents looking for presents for the kids, and we can see that being of particular importance as we head into Black Friday and the holiday season.

Right now, however, there is reason to visit the Nintendo Store ASAP. For the opening celebration, which will end on 19th November, there are a number of sales going on in the store.

We snagged a physical paper pamphlet showing off these sales which you can see below:

For those who can’t make it to the store we have two pieces of good news. The first is that you can still shop for most if not all of the items online through the website.

You won’t be able to get those specific promotions in the pamphlet above, but sales happen regularly on the online store and doubly so for the aforementioned Black Friday later this month.

Our second piece of good news is that we will soon give you an inside look of the store so you can see what is on offer in detail. Check back for that soon.