Can you remember back to the beginning of the internet, and also back to the beginning of online shopping? If you can, then you remember how limited your options were. You could get books at Amazon. You could sell some of your stuff on eBay, and bid against others when you were looking for something
BassPro, Cinemark, JoAnn Fabric and Crafts, Movember, Papa John’s, Rakuten, Saks Fifth Avenue, Staples, SHOP.com and Tickets.com are among the first merchants to offer consumers new option to click to pay Today, American Express, Discover, Mastercard and Visa announced the arrival of faster, more secure online checkout based on the new EMV® Secure Remote Commerce
Positive South African performance delivers overall Group earnings growth, despite challenges in Zambia and Zimbabwe Trading profit in core South African business up 16.4%, with trading profit margin up from 2.5% to 2.8% of turnover Group turnover growth of 6.0% on a comparable basis (6.2% on a constant currency basis) South African turnover growth of
South Africa is home to a nation of promotion obsessed shoppers. This insight stems from a Nielsen analysis on The Price of Promoting, which shows that 75% of South Africans claimed to know the prices of grocery items they regularly buy and notice changes in price, versus 69% in 2018, and their spending habits confirm
Checkers has signed up the millionth customer to its new Xtra Savings programme, just a week following its launch on Monday 14 October. The Checkers Xtra Savings card is helping consumers to make huge savings in tough economic times and discounts are clearly marked in store. Some of the incredible offers currently available include: 750ml
Positive online restaurant reviews and recommendations from customers can be highlighted with Premium listings on TripAdvisor to improve visibility and reputation. Restaurants gearing up for the end-of-year tourist season should ensure their social media listings and online reviews are optimised in order to boost their visibility and increase trade. Research shows that seven out of
The Online Retail in South Africa 2019 research study by World Wide Worx and Platinum Seed reports that online retail growth continues on a steep trajectory. In the forward to the report, Visa points out that South African digital commerce is growing at an impressive four times the rate of traditional commerce and mobile commerce
Toy retailer also set to open new store at Festival Plaza later this year and unveils the must-have toys this holiday season As part of its commitment to provide customers a better shopping experience, Toys “R” Us today announced that it has fully implemented its Scan & Go feature across all 13 stores in the
Symphony RetailAI has released a research survey on the topic of how Artificial Intelligence is impacting retailers’ merchandise management processes. The survey participants, senior execs at leading retailers, answered questions including where they see AI adding most value. Symphony RetailAI is a global provider of AI-enabled revenue growth management solutions for retailers and manufacturers. The
Amazon is making it even easier for customers to pay with cash. Amazon PayCode, already available in 19 countries around the world, launches today in the U.S. and allows customers to choose Amazon PayCode at checkout and then pay for their purchase in cash at one of 15,000 Western Union locations. Items ship once customers
The 2019 Nielsen South Africa Shopper Trends Report has found that ‘lowest prices’ are no longer the key driver of store choice in the country and that value for money, along with the shopping experience is what is driving South African shopper feet through the door. Shopper Trends is an annual report based on multiple
The wait is over – Checkers Xtra Savings is here! Africa’s largest supermarket group has introduced its latest initiative that shows their loyalty to customers, and not the other way round. There are no Points. No Tiers. No Levels. Just instant cash savings on your groceries and drinks. Partnering with SA’s biggest brands, Checkers Xtra
The Shoprite Group’s significant positive impact in the countries and communities in which it operates have seen it subsidise staple products to the value of R141 million, donate surplus food and goods to the value of R60.4 million and serve more than 20 million meals to communities in need in the 2019 financial year. These
Six years ago, Uber hit the streets of South Africa and is now moving over one million *active riders across six cities. What started as a solution to get a ride at the push of a button has changed how riders navigate across their cities with the longest trip in the last year tracking at
Members of Generation Z influence a significant amount of household purchases and enjoy spending their own money, according to the latest issue of the Consumer View report released by the National Retail Federation. “We’re seeing a shift in the way families shop where children are much more involved with purchasing decisions,” NRF Vice President for
Ingenico Group, the global leader in seamless payments, is proud to announce its new partnership with high-street retail icon, M&S. Both companies will work together to implement a new payment service that will encompass all M&S customer touch points and digital channels, which are critical to supporting its sales and customer experience ambitions. The new
The Tribunal has today approved the merger involving Milco SA (Pty) Ltd (Milco) and Clover Industries Ltd (Clover) subject to a range of employment, local procurement of bulk juice concentrate, and information sharing conditions. Employment effects The Tribunal initially had concerns with the merging parties’ tendered employment-related conditions in terms of which 516 workers would
An effective strategy for responding to online reviews is good for business and can help companies enhance their reputation and improve operations. Consumers are increasingly using online reviews as their primary source of recommendations for goods and services. Engaging effectively with online reviews is an important way for companies to improve relationships and customer loyalty
Checkers Hyper revealed its state-of-the-art flagship store in Sandton City this morning, complete with chocolatier bar, an open-flame pizza oven, an in-store Kauai and an extensive range of innovative new products. Customers can look forward to a world-class shopping environment with unique experiences never before offered in a South African supermarket, such as: Famous Beluga
Carrefour Group announces acquisition of 49% stake in fintech Ewally, a company specializing in digital financial services, as part of its strategy to operate in the digital account segment in Brazil. The acquisition of a 49 % stake in the startup will allow the company to expand its payment and digital product and service distribution
Under the new ‘Jumia Mall’ category, customers will be able to easily identify & shop from the authorized dealers of leading brands. Leading e-commerce platform, Jumia has introduced a new service to customers dubbed ‘Jumia Mall’. This is a curated section on the platform that allows customers to easily identify the official distributors of leading
Rhodes Food Group increased turnover by 9.6% in the 10 months to July 2019 as the group’s regional business overcame the weak macroeconomic and consumer environment to grow turnover by 8.8%. CEO Bruce Henderson said good growth in the canned meat, fruit juice and dry foods categories contributed to the regional long life business increasing
South Africa’s latest Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) for the second quarter of 2019 shows a three point increase to 93, presenting a marginally more positive quarter on quarter picture for consumer sentiment in South Africa. Nielsen South Africa Connect MD Kerith Botha says; “Despite experiencing tight financial conditions due to factors such as rising fuel
SoftPOS enables Samsung mobile devices to be used for contactless transactions of any amount with no additional equipment First Data, now part of Fiserv, a leading global provider of payments and financial services technology solutions, together with Visa, a global leader in digital payments, and Samsung Electronics, will showcase the company’s new Software Point of
Focused on leveraging group scale more effectively to optimise store portfolio performance, improve buying and logistics efficiencies and reduce costs Massmart today reported interim results for the 26 weeks ended 30 June 2019 against a backdrop that offers little external support, both in South Africa and the 12 other African countries in which Massmart operates.
Woolworths Holdings Ltd (WHL) today announced results for the 53 weeks ended 30 June 2019. For comparative reporting, the Group also presented trade for 52 weeks and the commentary below relates to the 52-week period. Group sales for 52 weeks increased by 3.9% to R78.2 billion with adjusted profit before tax down 3.7% to R4.6bn.
Spur Corporation increased headline earnings by 10.2% to R165 million in the year to June 2019 as trading conditions continue to be challenging in South Africa while the international business was impacted by weak economic conditions and high operating costs in Australia. Total franchised restaurant sales across the local and international operations increased by 7.2%
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.
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
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.
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
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
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
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
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
• 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
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.
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
