Retail in 2024: The big picture
Retail saw current value growth in South Africa in 2024. The retail landscape remains challenging due to South African households struggling with a rising cost of living, persistently high unemployment rates, and currency depreciation.
Competition intensifies, leading to a more consolidated market
With consumers becoming increasingly price sensitive, leading retailers continue to expand their portfolios to gain a competitive advantage and boost their margins. As a result, niche segments such as pet stores are witnessing a significant influx of grocery retailers aiming to capitalise on the growing demand for items such as premium pet products and services across affluent shoppers.
SARS introduces new regulation for cross-border e-commerce
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has introduced new regulations to curb intensified competition from cross-border e-commerce platforms such as Shein and Temu. These regulations include increased customs duties and import VAT, aimed at protecting local retailers and generating government revenue.
What next for retail?
Retail is expected to see further value growth over the forecast period. The South African retail landscape is likely to see rising demand supported by an increasing population and improvements in economic conditions, which are set to boost consumers’ confidence in spending on discretionary goods.
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Overview:
Understand the latest market trends and future growth opportunities for the Retail industry in South Africa with research from Euromonitor International's team of in-country analysts – experts by industry and geographic specialisation.
Key trends are clearly and succinctly summarised alongside the most current research data available. Understand and assess competitive threats and plan corporate strategy with our qualitative analysis, insight and confident growth projections.
Data and analysis in this report provides further detailed coverage dedicated to the following key categories, where applicable:
- Convenience Stores
- Discounters
- Hypermarkets
- Supermarkets
- Traditional Grocery Retailers
- Apparel and Footwear Specialist Retailers
- Electronics and Appliance Specialist Retailers
- Health and Beauty Specialist Retailers
- Home and Garden Specialist Retailers
- Department Stores
- Variety Stores
- Warehouse Clubs
- Direct Selling
- Homeshopping
- Vending
If you're in the Retail industry in South Africa, our research will help you to make informed, intelligent decisions; to recognise and profit from opportunity, or to offer resilience amidst market uncertainty.
The Retail in South Africa report includes:
- Analysis of key retail trends
- Detailed segmentation of offline and online retail sales
- Historic channel sizes (retail value sales, outlet counts, and selling space)
- Company and brand market shares (retail value sales and outlet counts)
- Five year forecasts of market trends and market growth
- Robust and transparent research methodology, conducted in-country
This report answers:
- What is the market size of Retail in South Africa?
- Which are the leading retailers in Retail in South Africa?
- How are products distributed in Retail in South Africa?
- How is the rise of e-commerce and the expansion of modern grocery retail impacting traditional retail?
- How significant are discounters and private label in South Africa?
- To what extent are sales shifting towards digital channels?
- What is the long-term outlook for bricks-and-mortar?
- How is macroeconomic and political uncertainty affecting the retail industry?
- What types of retailers are seeing the fastest growth in digital sales?
- What is the future of retail?
Retail in South Africa
Retail in 2024: The big picture
Competition intensifies, leading to a more consolidated market
SARS introduces new regulation for cross-border e-commerce
What next for retail?
Informal retail
Opening hours for physical retail
Seasonality
Christmas
Back to School
DISCLAIMER
Convenience Retailers in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
Convenience stores continue to benefit from proximity
Petrol stations are reinventing their business model as fuel sales decline
Shoprite consolidates lead as franchise network continues to expand
Convenience retailers will benefit from improved market penetration
Forecourts will turn into lifestyle hubs as competition intensifies
More premium convenience stores are likely to emerge in affluent areas
Supermarkets in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
Supermarkets benefits from dynamic operating environment
Pick ‘n’ Pay makes a U-turn on QualiSave
On-demand delivery expand to meet demand for convenience
Supermarkets to continue expansion as economy recovers
Competition likely to intensify as retailers review business strategies
Expansion of dark stores likely to boost on-demand delivery services
Hypermarkets in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
Challenging economic conditions affect expansion of hypermarkets
Shoprite extends lead
Shoprite expands Sixty60 offerings to include non-grocery items
Hypermarkets will benefit from improvement in economic conditions
Investments in data-driven strategies could boost hypermarkets’ competitiveness
Strategic positioning to become an important competitive tool
Discounters in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
Discounters benefits from rising footprint from grant recipients
Pick ‘n’ Pay bets on Boxer’s IPO to boost operations
Usave expands in rural areas as competition intensifies
Discounters will continue receiving support from price sensitive shoppers
Competition likely to intensify as market expands
Technology will gradually make its way to discounters
Small Local Grocers in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
Small local grocers continues to grow despite expansion of modern outlets
Shoprite taps into small local grocers as it diversifies its offerings
Government call for the registration of spaza shops
Small local grocers likely to modernise despite challenges
Competition likely to intensify as e-commerce expands in underserved areas
Expansion of cash withdrawals in spaza shops provides room for diversified offerings
General Merchandise Stores in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
General merchandise stores continues to expand despite challenges
Edgars beats the odds by regaining traction
The Crazy Store continues to expand
Department stores to see cautious investments
Variety stores could regain competitive edge as government closes tax loopholes
Makro may intensify competition with department stores
Apparel and Footwear Specialists in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
Apparel and footwear retailers benefit from diversified offerings
Pepkor leads, while Truworths struggles as demand shifts to value for money
SARS clampdown on affordable cross-border e-commerce
Performance will benefit from increase in disposable income
Market likely to become more consolidated as Pepkor review business strategy
Local operators to regain traction online as cross-border loses ground
Appliances and Electronics Specialists in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
Appliances and electronics specialists facing challenging market conditions
Pepkor redefines affordability in smartphones
Appliances and electronics are increasingly available on demand
Appliances and electronics specialists will benefit from growing customer base
Emerging BNPL model could provide room for expansion in premium offerings
Sustainable offerings will expand as consumer expectations rise
Home Products Specialists in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
Home improvement subject to rising interest rates
Shoprite announces plans to exit home products
More grocery retailers are betting on pet stores
Eased inflationary pressure will boost demand for home improvements
Home products specialists likely to become more consolidated as acquisitions continue
Influx of grocery retailers will contribute to the expansion of pet stores
Health and Beauty Specialists in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
Beauty specialists diversifying offerings in response to competition
More pharmacies are embracing digitalisation
Clicks consolidates lead despite regulatory challenges
Health and beauty specialist stores will benefit from wellness trend
WBeauty is setting the standard for premium beauty stores
NHI implementation will drive expansion in pharmacy clinics
Vending in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
Vending operators continue to move away from cigarettes
South Africa bets on vending to address health concerns
Niche vending machines continue to emerge
Continued move away from tobacco and alternatives
Vending machines to continue to diversify offerings
Pick ‘n’ Pay to set a new pace for reverse vending machines
Direct Selling in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
Direct selling evolving in the face of challenges
Tupperware exits South Africa
Avon continues to expand its business model in South Africa
Direct selling players set to continue to reinvent business models
Health and beauty products will continue to dominate the channel
Omnichannel strategies will continue to transform business models
Retail E-Commerce in South Africa
KEY DATA FINDINGS
Retail e-commerce benefits from diversified offerings
SARS introduces new regulations for cross-border e-commerce
Takealot divests Superbalist to focus on marketplace offerings
Retail e-commerce will remain one of the fastest growing channels
BNPL will continue driving e-commerce sales as awareness increases
New regulation will give a competitive advantage to local operators
The following categories and subcategories are included:
Retail
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- Convenience Stores
- Forecourt Retailers
- Supermarkets
- Hypermarkets
- Discounters
- Warehouse Clubs
- Food/Drink/Tobacco Specialists
- Small Local Grocers
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- Department Stores
- Variety Stores
- Apparel and Footwear Specialists
- Appliances and Electronics Specialists
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- Home Improvement and Gardening Stores
- Homewares and Home Furnishing Stores
- Pet Shops and Superstores
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- Beauty Specialists
- Pharmacies
- Optical Goods Stores
- Health and Personal Care Stores
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- Bags and Luggage Specialists
- Jewellery and Watch Specialists
- Sports Goods Stores
- Traditional Toys and Games Stores
- Other Non-Grocery Retailers
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- Fashion Vending
- Health and Beauty Vending
- Appliances and Electronics Vending
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- Alcoholic Drinks Vending
- Hot Drinks Vending
- Soft Drinks Vending
- Tobacco Products Vending
- Foods Vending
- Home Products Vending
- Other Products Vending
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- Apparel and Footwear Direct Selling
- Personal Accessories Direct Selling
- Eyewear Direct Selling
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- Beauty and Personal Care Direct Selling
- Consumer Health Direct Selling
- Tissue and Hygiene Direct Selling
- Appliances and Electronics Direct Selling
- Drinks and Tobacco Direct Selling
- Foods Direct Selling
- Home Products Direct Selling
- Other Products Direct Selling
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- Apparel and Footwear E-Commerce
- Personal Accessories E-Commerce
- Eyewear E-Commerce
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- Beauty and Personal Care E-Commerce
- Consumer Health E-Commerce
- Tissue and Hygiene E-Commerce
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- Consumer Appliances E-Commerce
- Consumer Electronics E-Commerce
- Toys and Games E-Commerce
- Drinks and Tobacco E-Commerce
- Foods E-Commerce
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- Home Care E-Commerce
- Home and Garden E-Commerce
- Pet Care E-Commerce
- Other Products E-Commerce
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- First-Party (1P) Marketplace E-Commerce
- Third-Party (3P) Marketplace E-Commerce
- Grocery E-Commerce
- General Merchandiser E-Commerce
- Apparel and Footwear Specialist E-Commerce
- Appliances and Electronics Specialist E-Commerce
- Home Products Specialist E-Commerce
- Health and Beauty Specialist E-Commerce
- Leisure and Personal Goods Specialist E-Commerce
- Other E-Commerce Retailers
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Retail
Retail is the sale of new and used goods to consumers from a business for personal or household consumption from retail outlets, kiosks, market stalls, vending, direct selling and e-commerce. Retail is the aggregation of Retail Offline and Retail E-Commerce. Excludes specialist retailers of motor vehicles, motorcycles, vehicle parts. Also excludes fuel sales, foodservice sales, rental transactions, and wholesale sales (e.g. Cash and Carry). Sales value excluding or including VAT/Sales Tax. Retail also excludes the informal retail sector. Informal retailing is retail trade which is not declared to the tax authorities. Informal retailing encompasses (a) sales generated by unregistered and unlicensed retailers, i.e. retailers operating illegally, and (b) any proportion of sales generated by a registered and licensed retailer that is not declared to the tax authorities. Unregistered and unlicensed retailers operate predominantly (although not exclusively) as street hawkers or operate open market stalls, as these channels are harder for the authorities to monitor than permanent outlets. Activities in the illegal market, which is usually understood to refer to trade in illegal, counterfeit or stolen merchandise, are included within our definition of informal retailing. Activities in the “grey market”, which is usually understood to refer to trade in legal merchandise that is sold through unauthorized channels – for example cigarettes bought legally in another country, legally imported, but sold at lower prices than in authorized channels – will be included as informal retailing if no tax is paid on sale by the retailer. However if the retailer pays tax – for example on cigarettes bought legally in another country but sold at a lower price than standard – the sale is included within formal retail.
See all of our definitionsWhy buy this report?
- Gain competitive intelligence about market leaders
- Track key industry trends, opportunities and threats
- Inform your marketing, brand, strategy and market development, sales and supply functions
This report originates from Passport, our Retail research and analysis database.
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