Leading with A Strategic Vision anchored in Sustainability

The most significant attribute of Amelia Beattie, Chief Executive of Liberty Two Degrees, is her ability to create a clear vision with a strategy to execute that is anchored in sustainability. She has a strong resolve to get things done no matter how hard they are, and this is further complemented by the bold and courageous targets she puts in place to effect real change in the wider ecosystem. She has an unparalleled work ethic, and one of her unique abilities is to lead with love. She cares deeply for people in a way that not only helps them grow and reach their full potential, but because of her ability to connect and engage, she fosters a sense of belonging.

Being vision-driven, a sustainable strategic thinker, and goal-focused with a proven history of leadership and achievements, Amelia has been setting the standards and maximizing returns to harnessing her team strengths to improve enterprise-wide performance. For the steadfast leader, collaboration can build consensus among executive teams and stakeholders to promote transparency and influence positive change, which has been repeatedly proven. “Clear and effective communication with a wide range of stakeholders, including employees, customers, shareholders, communities and regulators, is the key,” she explains. “I also lead by example, by being myself and true to myself, being aware that I am being observed and sometimes seen as a role model to other women.” She has been promoting learning, sustanablity and creative thinking to keep curiosity for leading-edge trends in the industry, self-development, and striving for change that builds and rebuilds the organization that serves the customers and communities well and performs at its best.

Armed with this mindset and gratitude, Amelia is committed to delivering value for all. Liberty Two Degrees is a South African precinct-focused Real Estate Investment Trust (“REIT”) that co-owns a quality iconic property portfolio of South African assets that are primarily retail focused. With a vision to be the leading South African precinct-focused, retail-centered REIT, Liberty Two Degrees remains focused on future-proofing its investments through unrivalled experiential offerings, supporting its passionate people to drive execution while delivering sustainable growth over time through sustainable and integrated thinking, improved value creation, digital transformation initiatives and the execution of their assets’ masterplans.

“We are guided by principles of humanity and people engagement, as we understand that the sustainability and the future impact of our business should benefits all stakeholders,” explains Amelia. “The scale of our business makes this viable for investment, with management taking a long-term view, while we continue to re-examine quality through the impact we make not only in the surrounding communities, but also on the environment.” Liberty Two Degrees is focused on continuously improving the quality of its assets and introducing innovative and unique experiences that attract tenants, shoppers, and visitors to the spaces.

The company was recently awarded a Level 1 BBBEE status – and while Liberty Two Degrees is exceptionally proud of this recognition - this status was achieved because Amelia and her team actively practiced changing the narrative of their business, ensuring that everything they did was and is, underpinned by diversity, equity, and inclusion, to ensure they are positive partners in their sector and the economy. “The same can be said for our Net Zero targets. Through Good Spaces, our environmental building block, we remain focused on implementing our commitments to minimise our environmental impact by driving operational efficiencies and pursuing innovative initiatives that support our commitment to our Net-Zero 2030 targets, which we are well on our way to achieving,” elucidates Amelia.

“With an increase in distribution growth across the portfolio, all our malls achieved Gold ratings for 2022 in the annual SHORE assessment, and Sandton City, Nelson Mandela Square and Eastgate Shopping Centre achieved Platinum status. The SHORE-certification system is an operational risk and resilience certification for retail assets.”

Liberty Two Degrees is always striving to sustainably improve, so its strategic goals continue evolving as the market and the consumers do. As a result, they continue to look at ways to create sustainable value for their stakeholders, improve the quality of their assets by introducing innovative and unique experiences that attract tenants, customers, and visitors to the spaces, and, in essence, create experiential spaces to benefit generations to come. “For Liberty Two Degrees, we will continue to take bold steps, walk a concerted transformation path and explore new opportunities that drive sustained transformation, inclusive economic participation, and ultimately growth to make an impact,” says Amelia. “For me personally, I am working towards my dream of creating a leadership academy for the next generation of leaders in South Africa to learn how to lead with love.”