Leading Australian retailer selects Adyen to provide improved online payment capabilities while increasing authorisation rates. Adyen has announced a partnership with the Cotton On Group, Australia’s largest global retailer. With this partnership in place, Adyen is helping to power eCommerce payments for the Cotton On Group brands including Cotton On, Cotton On KIDS, Cotton On BODY,
By 2022, total E&M revenue in South Africa is expected to reach R177.2 billion, up from R129.2 billion in 2017 Africa’s entertainment and media industry has entered a dynamic new phase – a third wave of convergence. The borders that once separated the entertainment and media (E&M), technology and telecommunications industries are blurring in the
Fees Cost Consumers Nearly as Much as Christmas Presents or School Supplies The National Retail Federation has said a proposed new class action settlement, which purports to resolve claims that Visa and MasterCard set credit card swipe fees in a multi-billion dollar price-fixing scheme, largely resembles part of an agreement that both a federal appellate court
PayPal and Ipsos have released their fourth annual cross-border eCommerce report. Interviews were conducted earlier this year. Understanding the global eCommerce revolution, the company conducted a global, 31 market survey that examined 34 052 consumers’ online and cross border shopping behaviours. Online shopping continues to rise in South Africa The research shows that online shopping
Garmin Southern Africa have announced that the Garmin Pay contactless payment feature is now live on a range of Pay-Enabled Garmin watches in South Africa. The feature is currently available to VISA-enabled cardholders of First National Bank (FNB) and RMB Private Bank. This new feature from Garmin enables consumers to make highly secure contactless payments at near-field
The body-positivity brand, Donna, officially launched online in mid-July and has exceeded its targets by over 300% every day since launch, making it the fastest growing online store in the TFG group, and the top performing store out of the 100 nation-wide bricks stores. Donna offers clothing to women from size 14 to 32. Since
The South African consumer is experiencing a severe wallet squeeze thanks to a raft of rising costs including spiraling petrol and electricity prices, the implementation of sugar tax and a value added tax (VAT) increase to 15%. To manage their expenses, consumers have had to make some tough choices and adjust their consumption patterns. The
Massmart reports interim results in severely constrained consumer environment characterised by soft demand for durable goods and significant major food commodities deflation. Key highlights • Total like-for-like sales for the period grew 1.9% to R41.6 billion, while comparable store sales increased 0.2% • Product inflation decreased to 0.7% • Headline earnings before restructure costs decreased
Ingenico Group, the global leader in seamless payment, has announced a partnership with Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions, the market share leader in retail store technology, that will enable grocers and other retailers to better serve their customers by enhancing the customer experience at the point of sale. With growing pressure from new entrants and existing
SPAR Zimbabwe has opened a new store in Kwekwe, a mining city that has the largest mineral wealth in the country and is considered to be the industrial centre of Zimbabwe. SPAR Kwekwe is located along the main road, which travels through the Central Business District, alongside the main highway connecting Harare in the North
In a first for supermarket retailing in South Africa, Checkers is launching Ready to Chef meal kits. Developed by chefs, each meal kit consists of fresh, locally-sourced ingredients and a step-by-step recipe card with a QR code to a how-to video. With Checkers’ Ready to Chef meal kits, even time-pressed consumers can now cook delicious,
A Cape Town-based children’s wear chain is set to go big within the next few years, thanks to the advanced management tools and market data within its point of sale solution. Petit Love, a luxury baby-goods retail chain, is targeting expansion to 15 new stores over the next four years, proving that small business can
HomeChoice International PLC (the Group), a leading provider of innovative Retail and Financial Services products to a growing female mass market customer base in southern Africa, today announced solid results for the period ended 30 June 2018. Headline earnings increased by 16.1% to R260 million and HEPS increased by 14.7% to 249.6 cents, continuing its
Over the past year, South Africa’s independent retailers enjoyed sales volumes 25% higher than the global average, according to data from retail management software leader Vend. Vend’s Retail Benchmark Report for 2018, which compared data from over 13,000 retailers using Vend around the world, reveals that globally the average independent retail store makes $22,300 per
E-commerce retailers grew their share of the South African technical consumer goods market by 52% in 2017, accounting for 6.9% of total consumer spending by rand value for the year. This means they have nearly doubled their share of the market since 2015, according to research from GfK South Africa. GfK South Africa’s new report,
South African retail sales for June 2018 grew by 2.9 percent year-on-year excluding the effects of inflation, marking the weakest pace of growth since October 2017. This is according to the Mastercard SpendingPulse June 2018 report, which provides a macro-economic analysis of retail spending trends in South Africa. June’s retail sales volume was slightly below
The first on the continent to access Samsung Pay, South Africans will be able to enjoy this innovative, safer, simpler payment method that works anywhere. Samsung Pay joins the lineage of people-centered technology, allowing users to make secure, simple mobile payments, almost anywhere, when purchasing goods at any store. Users can simply tap their compatible
Fashion retailer TFG has poached the CEO of Grindrod Freight Services, Bongiwe Ntuli, to fill the role of finance chief. TFG said previously that Anthony Thunström, the current CFO, would move into the CEO role on September 3. Current CEO Doug Murray will step down at that time after almost 11 years in the job.
Online and mobile payments are taking off in Africa as a combination of improved internet access, advanced financial systems and widespread mobile penetration help spur demand for services. However, the ability to pay and accept payments on the continent are not without their challenges, principally around risk and settlement. “For the last decade, the ability
It’s no secret that South African shoppers are beset by a storm of rising prices and it seems their shopping baskets are definitely feeling the pain with the average consumer now hyper aware of what they’re purchasing. As a result, the latest Nielsen Shoppergraphics Report – which looks at shifts in consumer purchasing behaviour within
Pick n Pay has its sights set on creating 15,000 new jobs over the next three years. According to Pick n Pay chairman Gareth Ackerman, the retailer hopes to bring young people into the world of work and expose them to the opportunities that retail provides to build a career. Speaking at the company’s AGM,
Contactless payments is expected to reach $2 trillion by 2020, representing 1 in 3 in-store transactions globally. The trend – driven by payment cards and mobile wallets – will see contactless payments equating to 15% of the total point of sale transactions, according to new data from Juniper Research. However, the data shows that contactless
Travelstart and Pep have partnered to deliver a service that enables customers to pay for flights in more than 600 Pep stores nationwide. Named Pay@Pep, the partnership will make it easier for those customers who are looking for alternative ways to pay for their flights. Commenting on the partnership, Travelstart head of global partnerships Odette
In a recent study, it was established that the current size of the South African retail market is estimated at around 23.4 million square metres (sqm) of gross lettable area (GLA) across 1959 individual shopping centres (as of July 2017). The study was conducted by MSCI on behalf of the South African Council of Shopping
A new, exclusive partnership between Spar and South African ticketing company Ticketpro will see customer kiosks being rolled out in Spar stores nationwide. Through utilising technology developed by Blue Label Telecoms, Ticketpro streamlines the ticketing, hospitality and access control for a range of events across the country, offering customised ticketing solutions to a wide variety
ACI Worldwide, a leading global provider of real-time electronic payment and banking solutions, has announced that its UP eCommerce Payments solution provides a fast and flexible way for local card acquirers and alternative payment methods to integrate with ACI’s extensive global network of payment endpoints. New self-integration capabilities, established with developers in mind, give card
Wirecard, the global innovation leader in the field of digital financial technology, is expanding its long-standing partnership with SAP, the global market leader in the segment of enterprise application software, to launch Wirecard Extension for SAP Commerce. SAP Customer Experience (former SAP Hybris) is a global provider of enterprise multichannel e-commerce and product content management
Walmart Inc. announced it is establishing a strategic partnership with Microsoft Corp. to further accelerate Walmart’s digital transformation in retail, empower its associates worldwide and make shopping faster and easier for millions of customers around the world. Through this partnership, Walmart has chosen Microsoft as its preferred and strategic cloud provider tapping into the full
The FairPlay movement has called for a public enquiry into the fiasco that saw a zero tariff for sugar being set and gazetted in South Africa last year, which allowed importers to bring in and stockpile sugar duty-free, “and which plunged the South African industry into a crisis”. “This is more than an administrative error.
German furniture and décor brand Kare has opened its first South African store in Kramerville, Johannesburg. The 1,000 square metre space is located on Appel Road and carries the brand’s extensive range of furniture, lighting and accessories. Having established a firm foothold in Europe, Asia and the Americas, the South African launch follows store openings
Fast food group Gold Brands plans to dispose of its Black Steer franchise business to Laudian Franchise Management One for R3.2 million. The move is expected to increase cashflow and reduce debt for the JSE-lister franchisor. In the group’s results to the end of February, released last week, revenue declined to R40.2 million from R142.8m
On this week’s episode of Marketplace Africa, CNN International’s Eleni Giokos meets Tertius Carstens, the CEO of Pioneer Foods. He outlines the company’s journey from its beginning in 1997 and describes some of the challenges the company has had to overcome. Carstens tells the programme how the company began: “The official starting point for Pioneer
Total South African retail sales for May 2018 grew by three percent year-on-year excluding the effects of inflation, compared to the 3.1 percent year-on-year growth recorded in May 2017. This is according to the Mastercard SpendingPulse May 2018 report, which provides a macro-economic analysis of retail spending trends in South Africa. The report shows that
Research shows that monetary rewards are not the only drivers of customer-loyalty programs. Experiential rewards provide greater long-term benefits. Loyalty programs are supposed to unlock great value for companies by driving higher sales and boosting brand affinity. So why aren’t they doing this? Although more and more companies now have loyalty programs (they’re growing at
New study on cash automation presents in-depth insights from retailers in 13 countries on technology which counts, validates and stores banknotes, and which is capable of fully automating cash management in stores. Security considerations drive retailers to invest in automation of cash processing Retail Cash Automation 2018, a brand new study by strategic research and
Digital shopping cart concept shows complete purchases via app in-store. Wirecard and T-Systems are working with retailers on the digital supermarket: The concept is designed to let consumers draw up their shopping list using an app, for example, at home. In-store, shoppers link their smartphones to a shopping cart that will take them interactively through
The announcement by Tesco and Carrefour that they will enter into a long-term, strategic alliance is the latest in a series of consolidation between the major grocery retailers in Western Europe. The Alliance will cover the strategic relationship with global suppliers, the joint purchasing of own brand products and goods not for resale. It will
South Africa has signed the African Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement with the African Union, which will pave the way for the country to benefit from inter-regional trade within the African continent. “This agreement is an important step towards South Africa’s participation in a market of over one billion people and will create opportunities and
Pick n Pay is experimenting with compostable bags as an environmentally friendly alternative to plastic bags. To mark International Plastic Bag Free Day and as part of its efforts to reduce plastic waste, the retailer performed a one-day trial at its V&A Waterfront store to gauge customer reaction. The trial is intended to inform further
Fashion and lifestyle retailer TFG walked away with the prestigious “Retailer of the Year” award at the 2018 Canal Walk Retail Excellence Awards. The Group has 26 stores trading in the shopping centre, representing all of its local brands. Gavin Wood, the CEO of Canal Walk Shopping Centre, says that the annual Retail Excellence Awards
The signing of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement by President Ramaphosa on 1 July, at the 31st African Union Summit in Mauritania, is considered a significant step towards increased intra-African trade and growth in regional value chains on the continent. The AfCFTA, if effectively implemented, will drive down the cost of trading
The exponential rise of disruptive technology trends has added a new dimension to consumer expectations. Connectivity is now one of the most critical differentiators and businesses have no choice but to provide customers with internet connectivity while they are onsite. The creation of a fully-integrated omnichannel communication and data-capturing system – a system which allows
The South African Council of Shopping Centres (SACSC) has a new president – property sector stalwart Stephan le Roux. Le Roux has more than three decades of experience in the various aspects of the property and retail industry. After studying and achieving degrees in accountancy and architecture, the property industry was a natural calling as
The pursuit of greater electronic payment adoption among South African merchants received a significant boost with the announcement of a partnership between leading African fintech holding company Crossfin Technology Holdings and global fund manager Apis Partners LLP. According to Anton Gaylard, COO of Crossfin, the partnership with Apis will create an enlarged payments operating company
PCI SSC is in the beginning stages of developing a security standard for accepting contactless payments on a merchant’s commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) phone or tablet. Here we talk with PCI SSC Chief Technology Officer Troy Leach to learn more about this new initiative. Why is PCI SSC developing a standard for accepting contactless payments on
Mobecom Limited is pleased to announce it has signed agreements with two of Spur Corporations’ (Spur) franchise brands, John Dory’s and Spur Steak Ranches. Mobecom announced on 30 November 2017 that it had entered into a Master Services Agreement with Spur (MSA), as Spur’s exclusive provider of customer loyalty technology for Spur’s 590+ franchise outlets
Spur Corporation is to expand its restaurant portfolio with the acquisition of a 51% stake in the fast-growing franchise restaurant group Nikos Coalgrill Greek. Nikos Coalgrill Greek currently operates six franchised restaurants, with a further four outlets confirmed to open in the coming months. The first Nikos Coalgrill Greek restaurant opened in Durban North in
South African kitchen and homeware store Yuppiechef is set to open its second physical store on 1 July 2018 in Gardens Shopping Centre in the Cape Town CBD. The new store launches just nine months after the first brick-and-mortar Yuppiechef store opened in Willowbridge, Tyger Valley, Cape Town. “Our first store has been incredibly well-supported,
Legwear specialists Falke South Africa will this month be establishing a retail presence in Australia, following an “extremely successful” visit to the country. “There are definitively great similarities between the target markets here in South Africa and in Australia. Our audiences share comparable lifestyles, which will provide a great fit for the Falke brand. We
Edcon, South Africa’s largest non-food retailer, has announced a renewed focus on its iconic brands, Edgars, Jet, CNA and the thank U offering. Various new strategies, the launch of new stores and enhanced product categories will strengthen the positioning of these brands in line with this renewed strategy. At an event held at the Edcon
