Retail

South African retailer went from challenger to champion

Kirsten Minnaar • 25 February 2025

In South Africa’s fiercely competitive grocery retail market, Checkers has clawed its way to the top, now dominating a significant part of the country’s grocery market.

Trade Intelligence’s Corporate Retail Comparative Report revealed that South African retail stores have opened an average of 1 new store per day over the last five years.

Andrea Slaber, insights lead at Trade Intelligence, explained on the Kaya Biz podcast that retailers’ shift towards opening smaller stores has enabled this growth.

It helped these companies grow their footprint, reach new territories, and attract more customers. At the same time, she pointed out that the number of larger retail stores has decreased.

Although several South African retailers have participated in this boom, Checkers—part of the Shoprite group—has been leading the pack.

“Shoprite has shown tremendous growth and innovation over the past 5 years,” Slaber said. “If we have a look at the past year, turnover growth in the total corporate retail or modern trade space was at about 7.7%.”

“The Shoprite group itself grew by 12% in terms of turnover. So it definitely shows that they are a cut above the rest.”

Slaber pointed out that much of this growth is attributed to Checkers changing its business model around five years ago.

“It became very clear that Shoprite is watching and observing how the environment is changing and adapting their strategy to serve the South African retail industry,” she said.

“They are focussed on the consumer and trying their level best to bring the right offer to satisfy our households. I think they’ve done a tremendous job.”

The biggest innovations in the grocery retail space over the last few years have certainly come from Checkers, Slaber said.

In November 2019, Checkers launched its on-demand, one-hour grocery delivery service, Checkers Sixty60, in a few Western Cape and Gauteng neighbourhoods.

Although it saw an immediate positive response, the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated its growth to new heights.

“Covid-19 has also seen a once-in-a-generation shift to online shopping in South Africa, and it’s a step change we believe is here to stay,” said Neil Schreuder, Chief of Strategy and Innovation for the Shoprite Group.

“Since lockdown, order volumes have skyrocketed, and Checkers rapidly expanded Sixty60 throughout the country to cater for the increased demand.”

“Customers love the control of shopping from their couch, tracking the items as they are picked in-store as well as the delivery of the items in real-time from their phones.”

This innovation proved so popular with customers that other retailers quickly followed suit with their own delivery services.

Woolworths launched Woolies Dash at the end of 2020, Pick n Pay Asap! followed in 2021, and SPAR2U started operating in March 2022.

Despite these services now being a key part of nearly all of the country’s major grocery stores, many people still associate on-demand grocery delivery services with Sixty60.

For the 2024 financial year, the retailer reported a 58.1% surge in Sixty60’s growth, which decreased slightly to 47.1% for the six months ending December 2024.

While the grocer has been aggressive in terms of its e-commerce offering, it is still heavily focused on its brick-and-mortar stores.

“If we look at the Shoprite group of stores, the in-store experience is something that they’re investing in,” Slaber explained.

This includes “shoppertainment”, a marketing strategy that combines shopping with entertainment to create a more engaging and enjoyable experience for consumers.

“It really feels like an experience walking through those deli-like areas and food service areas,” she added.

Around the same time Checkers launched Sixty60, it started opening premium stores, offering an improved look and feel.

“With a strong emphasis on fresh food and convenience, the various in-store service departments have been designed to look and feel like a store within a store – offering customers an artisanal market experience within the supermarket environment,” the group said.

These stores featured improved layouts, including wider aisles and seamless floors, allowing trolleys to move with limited noise.

They also started incorporating Starbucks and Kauai shops, stone-baked pizzas, sushi bars and chocolatiers inside the stores.

In November 2020, Checkers also launched its premium food range, Forage and Feast, which includes items typically only found at speciality delis and food emporiums.

Previously, Woolworths was the only real player in the premium retail space and dominated that market as a result.

Since 2019, though, Checkers’ market share has increased from 57% to 62%, while Woolworths Food’s market share has dropped from 43% to 38%.

At the same time, the group has also been targeting the discount market with its brands like Usave, Shoprite, and Shoprite Cash & Carry wholesale stores.

“Last year, Trade Intelligence did research, and we were so surprised to see that between 2023 and 2024, about 10% of all South Africans across all the income groups took our personal loans to keep their households going and to buy food,” Slaber said.

Since the launch of the two-pot system in September 2024, South Africans have also been withdrawing their retirement savings to pay for food and household expenses.

“Those stores understand that South African shoppers are cash-strapped. They need good value, and that’s why there’s such a big appetite for the discounted model to grow.

“We’ve certainly seen some exciting developments this year,” she added.