SPAR Cameroon opened three more SPAR stores, in the Express format, in collaboration with Ola Energy, bringing the number of stores in the country to six. Focusing on convenience retailing, SPAR Cameroon’s newest stores are in the capital city, Yaoundé, with the 60m2 store in Ahala targeting single households and shoppers on the go whilst
This week representatives from Walmart’s Global Sourcing team are in Johannesburg to meet with 18 of Massmart’s South African suppliers who are interested in exploring opportunities to export their products to Walmart markets. This is as a result of a discussion that took place at the World Economic Forum in Davos between Minister of Trade
The new Edgars brand concept is unlike anything we’ve seen before in South Africa, seamlessly translating the brand’s new positioning and business direction into a physical open-floor space that immediately evokes a sense of play. Ever since Edgars re-launched the brand last year, the retail giant has been collaborating with South African culture and actively
On its ongoing commitment to phase out single-use plastic shopping bags by 2020, Woolworths has announced its first trial of specially-designed paper bags for fashion, beauty and homeware purchases. In alignment with its Good Business Journey, every aspect of the impact of the new paper bags has been considered, from improved care for the environment,
Further strengthening its position in the East African market, the Shoprite Group launched its third supermarket in Kenya, and the first outside Nairobi. The opening of Shoprite City Mall in Nyali, Mombasa on 29 August, has created 115 new job opportunities, of which 65% are occupied by women. This is in addition to the 240
• Purpose, Value, and Convenience emerge as drivers of consumption and innovation • Need for consumer-centric growth strategies The South African consumer landscape is currently fragmented and polarised, characterised by the double edged demand of the South African consumer. Some are feeling more prosperous, while others are amongst the most stretched spenders in the world.
SuitePOS, a single POS app that provides multiple in-store checkout options for retailers running NetSuite or Salesforce, now works with PayPal Here to simplify in-person payments and lower processing costs. SuiteRetail, the makers of SuitePOS for NetSuite and Salesforce, has integrated with PayPal Here to offer a modern and simplified payment processing alternative to traditional
A new payment services platform, utilised by two of South Africa’s oldest member organisations, promises to open up the buy-aid market to consumers and retailers alike. Co-Switch, a newly launched closed-loop payments platform, is currently being introduced to Cape Consumers and Iemas’ members and retail partners. Cape Consumers under their Bsmart card brand and Iemas
Checkers opened the doors to its 100th store in Gauteng at Ferndale on Republic, previously known as Brightwater Commons in Randburg, on Thursday, 29 August 2019. Almost 90 new jobs were created, bringing the full staff complement at Checkers Ferndale to 137, of which 105 are women and 108 are youth (between the ages of
Through the strategic investment, Standard Bank has launched a mobile application, powered by Nomanini, which offers underserved informal retailers financial services for the first time CAPE TOWN, 27th August 2019—Nomanini, the pioneering fintech platform for the informal retail ecosystem, has today announced a $4m funding round led by Standard Bank, Africa’s largest bank, and completed
There’s no doubt that technology has already re-shaped the way the world thinks about buying and selling. Who would have thought twenty years ago that people would be shopping on their phones? Despite the huge changes to the shopping experience in recent years, it’s important to understand that we are only part-way through this journey.
Checkers opened the doors to its first new-look store in Mpumalanga at the White River Crossing lifestyle shopping centre on Thursday, 22 August 2019. Almost 100 new jobs were created, bringing the store’s full staff complement to 159, of which 107 are women and 120 are youth (between the ages of 18 and 35). The
Consumers are embracing the technology offered by virtual cards, as Standard Bank starts to see the benefits of online shopping ecosystem, nine months after the launch its virtual card proposition. In the past nine months, virtual card payments have increased by more than 300%, though they started off at a very low base. A virtual
The Managing Director of Artee Group, the licence holder of SPAR Nigeria, Haresh Keswani, was recently honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award, while SPAR Nigeria was awarded Retail Brand of the year at the BusinessDay Nigerian Business Leadership Awards 2019. The Business Day Leadership Awards recognise leaders who have created and sustained outstanding entrepreneurial initiatives
Allied Wallet Africa, a global FinTech company offering various payment solutions in 196 countries, is pleased to announce a new integration with J2Store, a powerful, mobile-friendly Joomla shopping cart and e-commerce solution. Allied Wallet Africa’s wide set of payment solutions are now integrated with J2Store to provide new opportunities for merchants all over the world.
Key information Sale of merchandise increased by 3.6% to R150.4 billion. Trading profit decreased by 14.3% to R6.9 billion. Diluted headline earnings per share of 779.9 cents, down by 19.6%. Dividend per share of 319 cents declared (2018: 484 cents). Opened a net of 126 stores during the 12 months (2018: 154). View the complete
Trendy Italian underwear, clothing and swimwear brand, Yamamay, has launched its first South African flagship store at Menlyn Park Shopping Centre in Pretoria, finally bringing its exclusive international fashion ranges to local shores. Yamamay officially opened its doors to the South African public on Wednesday, 24 July 2019, with Stefano Ligrone, the First Secretary in
Lightstone reveals how the service station industry offering continues to evolve in a demanding environment. At the Nedbank Franchising Roadshow Lightstone, the provider of comprehensive data, analytics and systems on property, pointed out that the service station sector plays a pivotal role in the franchise industry and its forecast. Linda Reid, Head of Commercial Property
Allied Wallet Africa, a global FinTech company offering various payment solutions in 196 countries, recently announced an integration with 3dcart to provide a more comprehensive solution for merchants. 3dcart’s software enables users to build, adjust, and maintain an online store without any programming or HTML knowledge. 3dcart can be used in conjunction with Allied Wallet
Shopping has always been a social activity that brings people together, creates conversations, and helps build brand loyalty. Last year, we launched Shopify Ping, a mobile app that centralizes all customer conversations along with intelligent, automated marketing workflows to leverage the power of chat to help you grow your business. Today, we’re excited to launch
Platform built on Salesforce improves effectiveness and efficiency of operations, enables growth Accenture has helped Radisson Hotel Group in the Americas develop and implement a new digital customer relationship management platform and mobile application, bringing them together in a single, scalable system that makes it easier for the company’s franchisees and owners to do business
Allied Wallet Africa, a global FinTech company offering various payment solutions in 196 countries, recently announced that they will be able to service X-Cart users to further aide global entrepreneurs. This integration will serve to simplify e-commerce for merchants all around the world. With a custom, tested integration process, Allied Wallet Africa and X-Cart products
UnionPay International (UPI) has announced significant progress in the South African retail payments market through their co-operation with Pick n Pay and Absa Bank. Through a tripartite co-operation agreement, Pick n Pay, a major food, clothing and general merchandise retailer, is now enabled to accept UnionPay cards at all of its till points across its
New European PSD2 requirements significantly impact how European consumers and businesses buy and sell online—ACI’s UP solutions with real-time, multi-layered capabilities help businesses to lower fraud rates while providing a frictionless checkout experience ACI Worldwide, a leading global provider of real-time electronic payment and banking solutions, announced a number of tools and solution updates to
Affordable clothing retailer Pep Stores leads the pack in terms of customer satisfaction ratings in the latest South African Customer Satisfaction Index(SA-csi) for Clothing Stores, conducted by Consulta. The 2018 SA-csi for Clothing Stores ranks Ackermans, Edgars, Jet, Mr. Price, Pep Stores, Truworths and Woolworths based on highly scientific insights into the overall level of
Co-op’s Pay-in-Aisle App set to deliver greater convenience and flexibility for shoppers, utilizing ACI’s mobile payments technology ACI Worldwide, a leading global provider of real-time electronic payment and banking solutions, has announced that its mobile payments technology is an essential component of the Co-operative Group’s new Pay-in-Aisle App. The Co-operative Group (Co-op) is one of
The recently-certified connector provides business owners with a platform for end-to-end retail management. Continuing its quest to empower businesses through innovation and technology, CitiXsys, has announced a certified integration between its integrated omnichannel platform, iVend Retail and Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central. Already serving as a powerful tool for retailers and hospitality businesses around the
Vivo Energy, the pan-African retailer and distributor of Shell and Engen-branded fuels and lubricants, and Jumia, the leading pan-African e-commerce platform, have agreed to partner to develop and pilot a series of initiatives, designed to offer additional services to customers in selected countries where both companies operate. Implementation of these initiatives is a further demonstration
Customers can pay bills, buy cellphones, tickets, lotto, electricity and even insurance at Shoprite’s new k’nect stores Six more k’nect stores opening before mid-August 2019 Global money transfers at k’nect stores and Money Market counters are cheaperer than any other available transfers, no hidden costs and convenient for customers The Shoprite Group is making it
Starbucks to license technology to Brightloom – formerly eatsa – taking equity stake and seat on the tech company’s board of directors Integration to enable best-in-class digital solutions to be available for restaurants through Brightloom, revolutionizing the digital experience for customers Brightloom will make available cloud-based software solutions to Starbucks global license partners Starbucks Coffee
The landscape of retail is transforming faster than ever before. Every day there are new smart ideas that are raising the bar for retail excellence. From innovative tailor-made apps for employees to personalised customer welcoming technology, Massmart’s first-ever Digital Bootcamp gave a glimpse at the technological innovations redefining retail. Six individuals, six weeks, two hours
GfK South Africa has launched its Smart Path solution, one of the first offerings in the local market to give brands and retailers in the technical goods and consumer durables industries a complete view of the online and offline consumer path to purchase. GfK Smart Path combines social media listening, survey data and client point
PepsiCo (PEP.O) has struck a deal to buy South Africa’s Pioneer Food Group (PFGJ.J) for $1.7 billion, the companies said on Friday, lifting Pioneer’s shares and boosting a sector that has been hit by drought and tough trading conditions. The U.S. drinks and snack group said on Friday that Pioneer’s product portfolio was complementary to
Spur Corporation increased total franchised restaurant sales by 7.2% to R7.6 billion in the year to 30 June 2019. Franchised restaurant sales in South Africa grew by 6.2%, with sales from international restaurants increasing by 16.2% in Rand terms. International restaurant sales increased by 12.3% on a constant exchange rate basis. These results include the
An Exciting Product Innovation Aimed at the Retail Sector. The Argility Technology Group has announced the release of its latest innovation: PredictRetail, a Google Cloud native application offering predictive analytics to retailers. PredictRetail enables retailers to make better business decisions, by using machine learning, data science and predictive modelling, to extract insights from historical data
Integrated ICT and infrastructure provider, Vox has introduced the Vox WiFi Retail Lite solution targeting coffee shops, restaurants, and other small service businesses where customers have come to depend on freely available WiFi access. “Retail stores can ill afford not to provide customers with high-speed WiFi connectivity given the increased connected lifestyles we lead. The
When the first Coles store opened in Collingwood, Australia, over 100 years ago, nothing in the store cost over two shillings. It was a hit. Fast forward to 2019 and Coles is still a leading retailer – only now it has 40,000 products, 115,000 team members, 2,450 stores and $39 billion in revenue. What hasn’t
FNB has revealed that South African consumers are showing strong appetite to save after its customers initiated nearly 20 000 savings goals in just a few days since the launch of the Savings Goals feature on the Bank’s App. To date, some of the top Savings Goals that have been chosen by consumers include: saving
Footgear – backed by Old Mutual Private Equity (OMPE), has announced that it has acquired the Edgars Active and High Key chain stores, divisions of the Edcon Group, and leading retailers of branded sport and lifestyle footwear, clothing and accessories. The transaction remains subject to conditions precedent, including regulatory approvals. The acquisition, funded by growth
Investec Asset Management (‘IAM’) has completed its first private equity investment in Egypt, by acquiring control of Spinneys Egypt (‘Spinneys’), a rapidly growing supermarket chain in Egypt. This marks the eighth investment from IAM’s second pan-African private equity fund. The business is one of the leading grocery retail players in Egypt, having expanded to a
Game Stores Africa opened their 4th store in Namibia. The prominent brand is proud to open their 149th store in Walvis Bay on 27 June 2019. The iconic pink brand brings all the electronics, lifestyle, and essential products at the unbeatable prices Game is renowned for to the community of Walvis Bay in a 2
Shoprite created 100 jobs with the opening of its new store in Marapyane, Mpumalanga on Thursday, 27 June. The store’s total staff complement is 137, which includes 124 youth (between the ages of 18 and 35) and 82 women. Shoppers eagerly gathered to be amongst the first to benefit from the store’s opening specials and
• 30% of the total volume of products were sold at a discounted price in 2018 • 66% of promotions don’t break-even South Africa is home to a nation of promotion obsessed shoppers. This insight stems from a newly released Nielsen report The Price of Promoting, which shows that 75% of South Africans claimed to
Two of Tsogo Sun’s flagship Western Cape hotels – Southern Sun The Cullinan and Southern Sun Waterfront Cape Town recently announced the appointment of two new General Managers. Jacques Moolman has taken over as General Manager at The Cullinan while Johann Nortjè has been appointed as General Manager at Southern Sun Waterfront. Moolman and Nortjè
Naspers creates new executive position to lead Naspers’ activities in South Africa Phuthi Mahanyele-Dabengwa to join the Naspers management team as CEO, South Africa Responsibilities include leadership of Naspers’ flagship South African units, Naspers Foundry and Naspers Labs Naspers announces the appointment of Phuthi Mahanyele-Dabengwa to the global Naspers management team as CEO, South Africa.
Comparison tools lead the way for price transparency in e-commerce Online shopping has become increasingly popular amongst South African consumers. Convenience, competitive pricing, and a wide choice of products make online purchasing a no-brainer for tech-savvy shoppers, but retailers need to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to standing out against the competition.
The Technology Innovator Applauds its Twenty One Year Journey with Retail Giant Argility – a member of the Argility Technology Group has revealed details of its twenty-one year journey with the Shoprite Furniture Group, trading under the brands of OK Furniture, House & Home and OK Power Express. In 1998 Argility was appointed by the
Local retailer to offer customers a wider range of package-free fruit and vegetables Pick n Pay has launched a ‘nude’ fruit and vegetable produce wall – a dedicated plastic and packaging-free zone in 13 stores across the country as part of a trial to measure customers’ readiness to switch from pre-packaged food to loose products.
Adobe Experience Cloud to Power Rite Aid’s Seamless, Personalized Customer Health and Wellness Experience Rite Aid Corporation has entered into a strategic partnership with Adobe to deliver seamless, personalized and connected health and wellness experiences for Rite Aid customers via Adobe Experience Cloud, the industry’s leading end-to-end solution for experience creation, marketing, advertising, analytics and
Jumia Food, a unit of New York-listed e-commerce platform Jumia Technologies is offering cheaper menu options in its African home market to attract lower income earners as it seeks to boost growth, the delivery company said. The platform, which delivers food and drink in 11 African countries, joins other international companies such as ride-hailing firm
