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Bit of a shakeup over at The Big Blue. Paolo Peereboom, who has done great things in the commercial division, where Mr Brasher commends him for modernising the gaff, now becomes retail operations and supply chain director. "I now want him to apply his passion and expertise across our retail and supply chain operations as part of our strategy to be a more efficient and customer-focused company,” Mr B. And how’s this? Paula Disberry joins the Group as commercial director. She was headhunted, if that’s the expression, from Woolies, where she did sterling service heading up retail operations, online and real estate. Previously, she had a strong track record of delivering growth and innovation at global retailer Tesco, and had also enjoyed successful stints at Colgate-Palmolive and BP.

Comment: As we may have mentioned before, Pick n Pay is a business proceeding with determination to regain its ascendance in South Africa’s stiffly contested market.

Checkers, the posher scion of the Shoprite family, is doing right by both planet and people in a newly-minted partnership with Food and Trees for Africa and 11 community organisations, whom it will be helping to upgrade food gardens and establish new ones. This with the aim of addressing food security needs in communities where food is scarce and its sources uncertain. Hunger relief is a core focus of the Big Red One’s CSI programme, under which over R100million in surplus food is given away every year, even as a fleet of soup wagons circulates in the hungrier reaches of The Beloved Country, providing bowls of the warm stuff where most needed. Community gardens have enjoyed similar success – Wathint’ Abafazi’s Sustainable Food Garden in Bethelsdorp now feeds 200 people, and will add more to that number with an investment from Shoprite.

Comment: Food security is a massive and looming problem. But its solutions may be humbler, and more local. Nice one, Shekazi.

Anglovaal Industries Limited, a name we fondly imagine pronounced in the plummy tones of one enjoying a final brandy at the Illovo Club, have released their results, and we think sir will be suitably impressed: reported revenue up 8.4% to R12.2billion, with operating profit up 12.4% to R2.15billion. But it was in the matter of margin that they excelled, growing by 0.7 percentage points to 17.7%. While rand weakness hit the (fancy, imported) shoe division somewhat, shrinking margin from 25.2% to 21.8%, frozen fish did rather well out of the dear old ZAR’s travails, increasing revenue 10.8% to R2.17billion and increasing margin to 15.2% from 12.7%, despite the smaller catches.

Comment: Swings and roundabouts, eh. Or in the case of AVI, frozen hake and Jimmy Choos. The joys of a fully diversified business, whichever way you look at it.

“Dynamic Commodities?” you say, a little testily, if we may be permitted to observe. “Who the d____l are they?” Fair enough. That was pretty much our reaction, to be honest. But try this on: those fruity sorbet thingies which come in the actual peel of the fruit they were made from? Mm? Hmmm? Us too. That particular product in the Dynamic stable sells hand over fist in the US under the Island Way brand. Dynamic also exports various frozen cut fruit products to the US, and to Canada, Japan and South Korea, and has just sold 30% of its business to Remgro’s growth capital division, Invenfin. Shrewd move on Invenfin’s part: 95% of Dynamic’s business is in export, in a rapidly growing market segment which matches the modern punter’s desire for frozen treats with their need to shed a couple of extra lbs. about the equator. Among the other fancy food businesses in which Invenfin have taken a stake are BOS organic rooibos ice tea, artisanal chocolateurs De Villiers Chocolate and Le Bonbon, purveyor of fine handcrafted sweets and snacks.

Comment: It’s pronounced ‘der Vilyay’, if you must know.

And OK, with the second quarter’s surprising GDP growth numbers, we have avoided a technical recession, which is nice. 3.3% worth of economic growth takes us back to the heady declining days of 2014, which was as we recall, an endless round of moonlight croquet and dancing on tables. And it was especially nice after the first quarter’s deplorable 1.2% contraction. And even more so knowing that once again the economists, who had predicted growth of between 2.6% and 2.8% were out by at least 0.5%. Another way of putting that is, they were 35.7% wrong. If you worked at McDonalds, and you got 35.7% of your orders wrong, well let’s just say you may have to look for a new job, maybe as an economist. Anyway, to get back to our main point: this growth came on the back of a welcome surge in mining and manufacturing, and caused a little spike in retail shares. On the downside, it won’t be enough to rescue us from the dismal growth we’re likely to rack up for the year.    

Comment: Still, with business confidence rising after seven straight quarters in decline, there is room for cautious optimism.

Getting the Hay out of Hee, to quote Hugh Grant’s character in ‘Mickey Blue Eyes’, has been heckuva good for Super Group’s bottom line. Reducing their exposure to a flagging economy back home has been a priority for the business; they’ve made a couple of major offshore acquisitions accordingly, and boy has it paid off. Offshore operating profit rose offshore 66% to R1.2billion for the year to June, out of a total operating profit of R2billion.