Cashbuild Constructive discussion
Heck of a business you got there, Cashbuild sir. SA’s largest retailer of building materials and associated manly stuff, revenue up 9% to R3.3billion for the year to December ‘11, gross profit up 11% to R740million with gross margin hovering north of 22%. While South Africa is the main contributor at 87%, Malawi and Botswana are also looking healthy for the business, which is currently committed to a strategy of store expansion, refurbishment and relocation, having opened six new stores since July 2010. But Cashbuild, you say, with their aisles of hammers, electrical supplies and bags of cement, are hardly the stuff of the Tatler. And you would be right, except that in the current rash of reckless speculation about mergers and acquisitions, it has been mentioned that Shoprite were looking for a local retailer on which to spend some of the R8billion they are raising in their stocks and bonds issue, they could do worse than drop some of it on Cashbuild.
Comment: Which would get right in amongst SPAR and Massmart, wouldn’t it?