Dispersion within concentration: The changing location of corporate headquarter offices in South Africa

The aim is to examine the geographical location and changing patterns of headquarter offices of South Africa's leading business enterprises between 1982 and 1994. At the intermetropolitan scale of analysis Johannesburg emerges as the country's premier management centre and, over the study period, the city has greatly strengthened its function as the centre for office headquarters as compared to other South African cities. At the intrametropolitan scale of analysis the trend is towards the dispersion of head offices within metropolitan Johannesburg, with a notable weakening of the inner city as a head office location. Further research questions are posed concerning the changing picture of headquarter offices.

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Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.

This article is based on part of a broader study of the economy of inner‐city Johannesburg (The Johannesburg inner‐city strategic framework by R Hunter, M Jonker, J Rogerson, CM Rogerson and R Tomlinson), which was undertaken for the Johannesburg Administration. Special thanks are due to Herman Pienaar, Urban Strategies Division, Greater Johannesburg Transitional Metropolitan Council. Opinions expressed in this article and responsibility for all shortcomings are those of the author.