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Shoprite has always been of the ain’t broke, don’t fix it school, making changes to the business in response to new challenges or opportunities, and not necessarily going all-in on the next shiny object. However, in the last few months there has been no shortage of either challenges or opportunities, and this has awoken the spirit of innovation in the Big Red One. Initiatives include accelerating its e-commerce and delivery services via Checkers Sixty60 and Checkers Food Services, and the launch of virtual grocery vouchers via Computicket virtual voucher and online order fulfilment initiatives. The business is exploring other innovations including computer vision, AR, smart robotics, intelligent paperless solutions, and advanced video-conferencing solutions. Another innovation, of the more traditional variety and unrelated to the pandemic, is that Wendy Lucas-Bull is to bring her vast banking and consulting experience to bear on the Shoprite Board, where she is soon to replace Oom Christo Wiese as Chair.

Comment: A highly significant appointment, with, one hopes, ramifications for women in leadership across the industry.

The Gauteng Government’s draft Township Economic Development Bill excludes foreigners from opening businesses in townships. If passed into law, say some experts, the bill could prove economically devastating for the suburbs in question and the economy at large, reducing employment, eroding a vital skills base, and entrenching and legitimising xenophobia. There’s also the question of what positive effect such a law could have. Foreign traders are providing a service by offering lower prices and a wider range of products, says Bob Currin, CEO of information company AfricaScope. “But on the other side of the coin, they are perceived to be taking away opportunities from South Africans. I am not sure how legislation can fix that,” he argues. On the upside, the bill contains provisions which would ease the access of township entrepreneurs to financial support and skills.

Comment: Thorny. But it could be argued that the success enjoyed by foreign nationals is accessible to any citizen willing to learn from their good practices. If you want to know more about informal retail and what it can do for your brand, don’t miss our Informal Retail Online Briefing next week Thursday, 15 October. Click here for more info.

Big up to Woolies whose personal care products have just received top honours in the Private Label Manufacturers Association’s (PLMA), 2020 International “Salute to Excellence” Awards. Under the earth-friendly category they received awards for their All-in-1 Baby Laundry Pods and their Cucumber & Jasmine Tea Dishwashing Liquid, and in personal care for their Eucalyptus & Mint Foot Mask, and Cuticle Oil. “This reaffirms that we are on the right path in our ongoing quest to offer market-leading products that are inspired by nature, better for our customers and better for the environment,” says Rahim Hoosen, Trading Head for Groceries, Household, Pets and Personal Care. Another Woolies award in the news this week is the R43m awarded to ex-CEO Iain Moir as part of his pay package for FY20. This includes his salary as acting CEO of David Jones, the Aussie acquisition he has been sent in to dig out of its hole, leave pay and notice pay.

Comment: Home and personal care might be categories on which Woolies should focus as they attempt to repeat their success in Food across the business.

Quickly: name the UK’s most valuable retailer. Nyuuuurgh! Wrong! It is, as of last week, Ocado, which sells a princely 1.7% of the UK’s groceries, but which is valued on the LSE at £21.66bn, a cool half billion ahead of Tesco which controls 27% of the market. What’s the dealio? Turns out that Ocado’s tech side hustle, Ocado Solutions, sells its grocery-picking expertise to foreign supermarkets, and you already know what’s up with that. Also in the UK, Aldi are planning on opening a quick 100 new stores and an online ordering service as part of their £1.3bn investment drive in that soggy geography. And heading to Botswana now, previously embattled retailer Choppies has posted a solid set of results, increasing revenue +1% to BWP5,421 million, and operating profit a whacking +126% to BWP208 million.

Comment: Turns out leaving South Africa – not to mention Kenya, Tanzania, and Mozambique – was a shrewd move for Choppies.

Last week, a News24 investigation found allegations of physical and sexual abuse, money laundering, racism, cultism, gross human rights’ violations, impropriety, virginity testing and patriarchy at KZN’s evangelical KwaSizabantu Mission. The Mission, as you know, owns the aQuellé water brand, which is supplied to retailers including Pick n Pay, Makro, SPAR and Shoprite. aQuellé has appointed an external committee to investigate the allegations, which it also vigorously denies as an institution – although it conceded there may have been some individual wrongdoing. Pick n Pay and Makro are looking for answers, while Woolies has delisted the Emseni fruit and vegetables, also supplied by KwaSizabantu.

Comment: The confluence of church and commerce always makes for turbid waters.

Our colleagues at Kantar Retail have had a look at the dynamics of consumer behaviour during this time of plague, and their COVID-19 Barometer research has found that the majority of us are more in favour of buying locally-produced products these days, and that we’re looking at where things are made. Part of this is straight up patriotism in a time of economic distress, but there are more practical reasons: hygiene is one, with goods procured locally perceived as safer than imported products. Good news for Proudly South African, which as you know is a government initiative that promotes local procurement. “Local businesses, manufacturers, petrol stations, retailers, local products and services... in the absence of exports... have carried us through this pandemic,” said Happy Ngidi, head of marketing and communications at PSA. One such local business is Portia M Skin Solutions, which sources marula oil locally and uses it in skincare products which it supplies to over 2,000 stores in the Beloved and neighbouring countries.

Comment: Excellent work, PSA and the brands it champions. A powerful tool for our economic recovery.

According to Debt Rescue, 85% of all South Africans need help either financially, emotionally or both as a result of COVID-19, 55% of us need financial assistance but don’t have access to credit, and 96% of us are stressed about our health, our finances, or both. The lockdown has seen households take on an additional R20.7bn of debt to make ends meet, and absent a dramatic economic recovery, little chance of making a dent in it anytime soon. Unsurprising, then, that according to the 2020 Old Mutual Savings and Investment Monitor COVID-19 Special Report, almost half of us report that our personal financial situation is worse than it was a year ago. One bright spot in all of this, says Debt Response, is that our excellent National Credit Act allows deeply indebted consumers to repay their loans over a longer period of time in smaller instalments whilst enjoying the protection of the Act.

Comment: Small steps. For households and for the broader economy alike.