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Talk about boldly going… In the midst of a pandemic, and a recession, and a crackdown, PnP has announced that it is soon to dip a toe – heck, a whole foot – into the turbid waters of the Nigerian grocery market. “The appeal is that it is a hugely underserved consumer market and is going to grow. You have to look through the short term and into the long-term potential,” says Group Executive for Strategy and Corporate Affairs, David North. Pick n Pay believes it has a winning formula though – a partnership with local pros AG Leventis, who know the people and the laws, and a smaller neighbourhood store format. In other PnP news, the business has rather cryptically announced that it will be launching a new “virtual mobile network operator” soon, with a loyalty component, offering shoppers more data for less on the ‘PnP Mobile’ and ‘Boxercom’ platforms.

Comment: Some exciting stuff coming from the Big Blue. We’ll be watching their progress in Nigeria with particular interest.

Having made their mark as a purveyor of fine comestibles to the upper crust, Woolies, acutely aware of the challenges of the moment, are investing heavily in value. They announced last week that over the next two to three years they would be investing R1bn in prices, R750m of it in the Foods business. An initial R250m will be invested in the remainder of this financial year, much of it in the fresh chicken range such as all whole and portion chicken packs, excluding Easy to Cook, crumbed and marinated chicken. “We have also applied more promotions on everyday basics across Groceries, Household and Personal Care to be more affordable to more customers,” says Woolies SA CEO Zyda Rylands. The investment, she says, is the culmination of a process of optimising efficiencies in the business and value chain and passing savings on to embattled punters. In other Woolies news, our old and talented friend, and ex-Mr P director, Paul Knoop, is now GM of Menswear, a clear signal that Woolies is serious about the Apparel business.

Comment: Good moves both, and at the right time.

Those Clicks results then, for which you’ve been waiting for with bated breath: Group turnover up +9.6% R34.4bn, with retail turnover climbing +7.3% to R24.8bn on the back of competitive pricing, the opening of new stores, growth in online sales and the ongoing loyalty of Clicks ClubCard users. Health and beauty, that attractive hedge in a recession, grew turnover by +8.4%, while front shop health absolutely kicked the lights out, growing +19.7%. The business opened a net 39 new retail stores for a total of 743 stores, with 40 net new pharmacies opening for a now unassailable 585. On the downside, though, pharmacy sales growth was muted at +3.2% in the absence of a flu season (thanks COVID) and a switch to generic medication. And worryingly for Clicks, market share actually fell in pharmacy, down a touch to 23.8% as people got their necessities via delivery from the local apteek. “These results have highlighted that we have adapted to the new market dynamics and that we’ve settled into new ways of working,” says CEO Vikesh Ramsunder. For more, read through our handy one-page results summary here .

Comment: A lot of numbers, most of them good. But Clicks will have to find an answer to the home delivery issue.

A quick survey of UK retailers shows just how much things have changed since the onset of COVID-19. Here are just a few: One-way systems, which means no dashing in and out for just a couple of the items and skipping down this aisle or that on a whim. Except, of course, for the one guy in the store who doesn’t get it, and barrels down at you with a 24 pack of toilet paper under each meaty arm. Face masks, which have effectively put paid to flirting with attractive fellow shoppers in the organic veg. Also tends not to apply to meaty guy, above. Queuing, yes we still queue, but now the queues are vague meandering airy affairs that go all the way back to the imported cheeses. Space, man, I just need some space. Who knew there was so much of it down the local super? Buying literally whatever you want. Now we’re queueing for turnips like someone in Soviet Bulgaria, which after the last ten years or so of untrammelled capitalism we probably deserve. Protection for cashiers, which, quite frankly, they’ve probably always needed.

Comment: Take that, running dogs of modern FMCG.

In this brave new world of globalisation, it now takes a PepsiCo spokesperson to explain to us where the Marmite is. Think on that for a bit. But here’s the deal: you are aware, PepsiCo now owns Pioneer Foods. Which owns Marmite, which has been in short supply these how many weeks, as a result of the shortage of spent brewer’s yeast, a by-product of brewing which in the recent unpleasantness was not happening at the usual pace here in the Beloved Country. “As yeast is a live product, we are unable to stockpile it and hence the production unit had to stop functioning during that period,” says PepsiCo’s Sub-Saharan Africa’s Manufacturing Executive Mandy Murphy. Production on the 125g jars of the salty staple started in September, some but by no means all of you will be pleased to note, and the 250g jars started rolling off the line in October.

Comment: Marmite, eh.

Coca-Cola, as you may by now have heard, is retiring its beloved TaB brand of diet soft drink, which it has been flogging to the health-conscious since 1963, if you believe that. This as part of a two-year-long portfolio refresh, in which category-leading brands with the potential for scale will be prioritised. “This isn’t about paring down to a specific number of product offerings under our brands,” insists Global Head of Innovation and Marketing Operations Cath Coetzer. “It’s about continuing to follow the consumer and being very intentional in deciding which of our brands are most deserving of our investments and resources.” In other news of the brown and fizzy, Coca-Cola has beaten third quarter revenue and profit expectations globally, after a devastating second quarter in which sales in restaurants, theatres, and other out-of-home venues pretty much dried up.

Comment: Coca-Cola, having invented an entire industry out of bubbles and sugar, knows a thing or two about innovation.

Not yet the end, nor the beginning of the end, but maybe the end of the beginning, or something. According to the dear old SARB, the Composite Leading Business Cycle Indicator, that mysterious agglomeration of a bunch of measures which point to whatever’s coming down the tracks, rose for a third consecutive month in August, by a presumably heartening 3.7%, driven thither by the export commodity price index and the RMB/BER Business Confidence Index. What this means for the layman, and indeed for our erudite readers, is that we might be recovering faster from the COVID lockdown than expected. But don’t listen to us, listen to Investec Chief Economist, Annabel Bishop: “South Africa’s industrial production, retail and wholesale sales are evidencing marked rebounds from the second quarter, but the pace of economic activity is faster in some areas of the domestic economy than in others, as the recovery proves uneven.” She does go on to warn that things might slow a bit in the fourth quarter.

Comment: We’re a long way from home. But there is a promising breeze on our starboard quarter.