Long-serving director of Spur Corporation, Dineo Molefe, has been appointed as Chief Financial Officer of MTN South Africa, effective 1 December 2020. This means she will step down as a non-executive director of the group and as chair of the audit committee with effect from 3 September 2020. “On behalf of the board, I thank
The Competition Tribunal (the Tribunal) has dismissed a case of alleged cartel conduct against processed frozen foods company, Irvin & Johnson (I&J) due to a lack of evidence. The Competition Commission (the Commission) had accused I&J and beef processing company, Karan Beef, of allegedly dividing markets in the supply of processed beef products such as
NESTLÉ KITKAT, NESCAFÈ RICOFFY and NESTLÉ DESSERT AND COOKING CREAM join the festivities Each September, South Africans come together to reflect and celebrate their shared national identity. This year, Nestlé, through its three iconic brands: NESTLÉ KITKAT, NESCAFÈ RICOFFY and NESTLÉ DESSERT AND COOKING CREAM have come together to celebrate #YourHeritageYourPride linking food, music, language, fashion and art
SPAR South Africa has announced the appointment of Brett Botten as its new CEO and Graham O’Connor as non-executive Chairman – both changes to be implemented following the retirement of chairperson Mike Hankinson on 1 March 2021. Brett Botten first joined SPAR South Africa in 1994 and has great experience in the retail sector, having
wiGroup has launched a new self-service digital rewards and gifting platform. Wrapped links South African individuals, SMEs and corporates looking to seamlessly issue digital rewards and gifts, with some of the country’s leading fashion, electronics, pharmacy, hospitality and lifestyle brands. wiGroup currently issues over R100 million in digital rewards value per month assisting corporates who
Shoprite’s new transactional Money Market Account enables private and public sector businesses and institutions to make safe bulk mobile payments to thousands of people without incurring massive bank charges. Businesses of any size can use the Shoprite Money Market Account to process bulk payments to any number of recipients who just need a cellphone to access their
Key information Sale of merchandise increased by 6.4% to R156.9 billion Excluding the impact of hyperinflation trading profit increased by 10.4% to R8.3 billion Diluted headline earnings per share (DHEPS) increased by 2.5% to 765.8 cents (2019: 746.9 cents) Adjusted DHEPS* increased by 16.6% to 717.5 cents (2019: 615.2 cents) Full year dividend, in line
Mark Farrelly, the group’s Chief Operating Officer (“COO”) and an executive director, has resigned from the group with effect from 31 August 2020. Mark began his career with the group in 1990 as an operations manager and was promoted to regional operations manager in 1995. He joined the board in 1999 and was subsequently appointed
Mr. Alarcon has a robust and in-depth understanding of Central and West Africa Nestlé (www.Nestle.com) has appointed Mauricio Alarcon as new Chief Executive Officer of Nestlé Central and West Africa Ltd, effective September 1, 2020. Mr. Alarcon has a robust and in-depth understanding of Central and West Africa. In 2014, he became Managing Director of
The need to end gender-based violence (GBV) was at the forefront of conversation during South Africa’s Women’s Month (August) following a surge in cases of domestic violence during the COVID-19 lockdown. SPAR South Africa has pledged to use its vast media reach and has launched a campaign aimed at helping end GBV. As part of
Infobip delivered its SMS platform with customer relationship management (CRM) integration capabilities to food and beverage group Eat’N’Go, enabling it to align its messaging with customer behaviour, boost consumer conversion. Eat’N’Go Limited is a Nigeria-based quick service restaurant (QSR) group that is the lead franchisee for three well-known US fast food brands, namely Domino’s Pizza,
Lewis Group delivered a solid trading and operational performance for the year to March 2020 before being impacted by COVID-19 and the national lockdown which contributed to headline earnings per share declining by 30.8% to 260 cents. COVID-19 adjustments reduced profit before taxation by R339 million and headline earnings by R224 million. This includes an
Famous Brands has announced that the Group has sold its controlling 51% stake in boutique café brand, tashas™, to the founding Sideris family, who hold the remaining 49%. The sale is in line with the Group’s three year-strategic roadmap which includes a narrower focus of investment of resources in the Signature brands portfolio, which includes
Edcon is pleased to announce that further to its media release dated 6th July 2020, the company has signed the Sale and Purchase Agreement for the sale of parts of Edgars to Retailability Pty (Ltd). Retailability is a retail fashion holding company of retail brands including Legit, Beaver Canoe, and Style, operating in over 460
Ecodi Ghana, SPAR’s Partner in Ghana, is donating food and non-food items through the Food for All Ghana Food Bank to feed vulnerable families and community charities across the country. At an official MOA signing ceremony on Friday 14 August, João Rente Correia, General Manager of Ecodi Ghana, expressed the brand’s commitment towards ensuring shared value
South Africa is the first region to benefit from a new, white label mobile payment, customer loyalty, and rewards programme, with the launch of UBU International. The platform-based ecosystem converts the massive power of mobile search for products and services into feet through the doors of local physical and digital retailers. Many businesses have been
Behind every product we see on a store shelf there is a team of retail workers who got it there. From buyers, warehouse workers and drivers, to the merchandisers, packers, cashiers, and other crucial store operations staff. Retail workers play a key role in ensuring that we are able to access the products we need
SPAR International is delighted to announce that Captain Raymond Mashudu Mutangwa, store manager of SPAR Thohoyandou in South Africa, has won the prestigious International Store Manager Award run by the US-based Food Marketing Institute (FMI). The Award winners were announced at the FMI Future Leaders event per official press release. The FMI award celebrates outstanding
In these strange times that we find ourselves in, consumers tend to gravitate towards brands that they trust. This trust is built on the foundation of the quality of the product and brand innovation. “Traditionally, South Africans are brand loyalists. They will eat and trust Albany bread because their family has done so for generations.
South Africa’s leading health and beauty retailer has scooped the title of Coolest Specialist Health, Beauty and Accessory store in the 2020 Sunday Times Gen Next Awards. “We feel incredibly honoured to have been chosen as the coolest health and beauty store in South Africa and extend our heartfelt thanks to our Clicks community for their ongoing
As digital commerce continues to accelerate owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, Mastercard has announced it will offer tokenization services to merchants with app, eCommerce, and recurring billing card-on-file program in South Africa, further protecting consumers and increasing convenience when storing Mastercard cards in merchant databases. Dubbed Mastercard Digital Enablement Service (MDES) for Merchants, the service
Local e-tailer defies industry gender standards In South Africa, despite there being twice as many men than women specialising in information and communications technology (ICT), and more than four-times as many male software engineers than females, the budding online retail industry looks to be fostering a culture of gender inclusivity and equality. That is, if
Africa’s leading retailer of home improvement and building material products and service solutions, Builders, is set to open its doors and launch online trading to residents of Nairobi at the Waterfront Karen on 20 August 2020. Slightly delayed due to COVID-19 restrictions, this is the retailer’s first venture into East Africa and one that will
SMEs can accept touchless payments from their smartphones at no additional hardware costs Game changing solution allows small and micro merchants to enter omni-channel commerce space Mastercard has launched a new low-cost payments solution that enables small business owners to move their businesses online and accept a range of digital payments from their customers. The
Shoprite has launched its new Money Market Account, a free transactional account to give customers more ways to save, send or spend their money. The Money Market Account is available on the new Shoprite app or USSD and its main benefits include: No monthly fees, no load fees, no transaction fees. No debit orders –
SPAR, the world’s largest food retail voluntary organisation, with a presence of over 13,300 stores in 48 countries worldwide, has today announced further expansion in Africa with the launch of the brand in the Republic of Ghana. The development will see the conversion of 17 existing supermarkets in and around the capital city Accra. Future
With the Covid-19 pandemic seriously limiting retail sales in physical stores, online sales are booming like never before in South Africa. Pioneering the way is the discount online grocery retailer eButler which aims to reach every sector of the South African marketplace including those in townships and rural areas. According to global forecasts and statisa.com, ecommerce
The Shoprite Group’s Portfolio Management Office (PMO) gained international recognition recently when it won the 2020 PMO of the Year Award in Africa. They have also reached the finalist stage in the coveted World PMO of the Year Award, competing against corporates from Honduras (Americas), Ukraine (Europe) and the United Arab Emirates (Asia-Pacific). This latest
Shell customers are set to benefit from an enhanced customer care experience each time they drive into any of the over 150 Shell service stations countrywide. The development is a result of Vivo Energy’s recent launch of a customer service training facility, the Retail Academy, whose core mandate is to upskill its entire spectrum of
In the restaurant industry, the importance of good customer service is balanced by the need to ensure the customer can easily pay for their meal at the end of their experience – and these two areas inevitably converge at the point-of-sale (PoS). When the South African Nando’s business embarked on a journey to implement new
The global outbreak of the COVID-19 has undoubtedly changed the entire food industry. In order to help the food industry embrace changes and turn crisis into an opportunity，21Food and Topservice Expo jointly organized the 21FOOD ONLINE EXPO( July 25 to August 5 ). A virtual forum will be held where experts from home and abroad
As of 13 May, every country on the African continent had recorded a confirmed case of infection with the coronavirus. The resulting strict lockdown measures and social distancing precautions necessary to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic have had a profound impact on many African markets in which SPAR operates. During times of crisis,
Long-serving Chief Executive Officer of Spur Corporation, Pierre van Tonder, has announced that he plans to retire after 38 years of service on 31 December 2020. Pierre joined the group in 1982 as a junior restaurant manager. He held several senior management positions before he became a Director of Spur Steak Ranches and Spur Holdings
The V&A Waterfront is the first attraction in South Africa to adopt the World Travel and Tourism Council’s (WTTC) Safe Travels stamp, the world’s first ever global safety and hygiene stamp for Travel & Tourism, designed specifically to address COVID-19 and similar outbreaks The V&A joins an international list of 80 top travel destinations and
As businesses emerge from the sombre trenches of the past few months, eyes are on those who offer financially stressed consumers a silver lining and according to franchisee Rudolph van Zyl, Cash Crusaders is one of them. “Cash Crusaders stores will be able to meet an immediate post lockdown need,” says Rudolph, “and not only
TradeDepot, the B2B eCommerce platform for consumer goods in Africa, has raised a further $10 million in a pre-Series B equity round co-led by Partech, International Finance Corporation, Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi) and MSA Capital. This is in addition to the $3 million Series A led by Partech in 2018. TradeDepot will use the
The Edcon Business Rescue Practitioners are pleased to announce that it has accepted a conditional offer in terms of which the practitioners have agreed to enter into discussions with the Foschini Group Ltd for the sale of parts of the Jet business. TFG is home to a comprehensive portfolio of 29 retail brands that trade
Pieter Hanekom, the managing director of the Long Life Foods division of Rhodes Food Group, has been appointed as deputy CEO of RFG Holdings Limited with effect from 8 July 2020. Pieter (55) has also been appointed as an executive director to the board of RFG. A chartered accountant with over 30 years’ experience, Pieter
Ongoing innovation in PnP stores to make banking more accessible and convenient for all customers Customers can now make cash deposits directly into their own bank account at any Pick n Pay till point, anywhere in South Africa. Deposits at till points is another first for the retailer as they increasingly become a one-stop-shop where
Dis-Chem notes with disappointment the Competition Tribunal’s decision in which it found that Dis-Chem had engaged in excessive pricing of surgical masks and imposed an administrative penalty of R1 200 000 (one million and two hundred thousand rand). Dis-Chem Pharmacies CEO Ivan Saltzman said that Dis-Chem will take the matter on appeal to the Competition
The Competition Tribunal (the Tribunal) has found Dis-Chem Pharmacies Limited (Dis-Chem) guilty of charging excessive prices for surgical face masks during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Tribunal has also ordered that Dis-Chem is liable to pay an administrative penalty (a fine) of R1 200 000 (one million two hundred thousand rand). In its order and reasons,
Children are the future and education is their best way forward; because of this, SPAR Botswana is supporting schools and children in need. During the recent lockdown, SPAR Botswana provided funding for a range of education related initiatives. Schools and orphans supported The daughter of a supermarket manager of SPAR Acacia in Gaborone initiated a
Spur Corporation restaurants are ready to welcome customers from Monday, 29 June 2020, following the detailed regulations announced on Friday by the Minister of Tourism, Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane, relating to the operation of sit-down restaurants during advanced level 3 lockdown. It is important to note that each one of our restaurants is independently owned and operated,
SPAR Zimbabwe has contracted community development groups to make reusable, washable face masks. Working from home, the women of these community projects produced 1,000 masks, which were then distributed to people in need in Mbare, Chtinugwiza, and Mabvuku. This community outreach not only benefited the health and safety of shoppers and store team members but
The Fair Cape Cares Foundation has partnered with Cape Talk to help provide nourishing meals for the communities left vulnerable by the Covid-19 lockdown. The foundation, a charitable trust underwritten by Fair Cape Dairies, has committed to donating R400 000 worth of dairy products to feeding schemes in the Cape Town area during July and
Shareholders are referred to the Renewal of Cautionary Announcement (“Announcement”) published on SENS on 20 May 2020 relating to the Board of Directors’ (“Board”) decision not to provide any further financial assistance to GBK Restaurants Limited (“GBK”). Shareholders were furthermore cautioned that the Board’s decision to withhold further financial support for GBK may result in
Scheinberg Relief Fund helps online retailer Yebo Fresh increase its distribution capacity Disadvantaged communities in Cape townships benefit from a donation made to online retailer Yebo Fresh Attracting international interest, the disruptor Cape Town retail food provider Yebo Fresh is now able to provide food security to even more township residents suffering as a result
Computicket, which launched virtual grocery vouchers to help people in need during the Covid-19 pandemic, has sold almost 200 000 vouchers valued at over R50 million since the start of the lockdown. It is also live streaming events and partnering with SA Rugby to raffle tickets for Food Forward SA and Gift of the Givers. The ticket seller, whose
The Edcon Business Rescue Practitioners today announce the signing of a “Heads of Agreement” to sell parts of Edgars to Retailability (Pty) Ltd. Retailability is a fashion retailer and the holding company of store brands including Legit, Beaver Canoe and Style, operating in over 460 stores across South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho, and eSwatini. The
The Argility Technology Group’s retail driver delivery solution, MultiTrax, has been expanded to include an additional module that automates driver delivery scheduling (DDS). This is a powerful addition to this innovative product, especially in Covid-19 times, where retailers are scrambling to retain trade and move to online purchases with timeous delivery. MultiTrax – developed in-house
