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The recent unrest and related looting had a devastating effect on retailers and business owners affected by the loss of goods and damage to properties and infrastructure. The impact is still tangible in KwaZulu-Natal, where in the aftermath long queues were observed outside some stores not affected by looting, as shoppers stocked up on grocery essentials. However, stores have lifted restrictions on the number of grocery items allowed per shopper as stock levels begin to normalise. In Gauteng, stores were well stocked on general and promotional lines, a sign of stores recovering to normal operations, although some regions have been struggling to maintain stock of essential groceries, as affected areas were prioritised for replenishment. Following the impact on its KZN DC, Pick n Pay has taken interim measures towards optimising on-shelf availability. Suppliers have been encouraged to make direct deliveries to take the pressure off deliveries rerouted from the Longmeadow DC in Gauteng, and two Hypers have been corralled into service as ‘mini DCs’. Shoprite is forging ahead, reopening as many stores as possible over the next two months, and has dispatched its mobile Usave eKasi stores to communities whose malls were affected. SPAR is unable to fast-track repairs and restocking of stores affected by looting at a similar rate, as individually owned stores have their own insurance, rather than the central support provided by corporate retailers. Massmart has announced that it is fast-tracking the opening of a new distribution facility in KZN after the beating taken by its Riverhorse Valley DC during the looting.

Comment: Through the combined efforts and collaboration between service providers, retailers and other stakeholders, stores affected by looting are reopening, with trading returning to normal and this helping to restore consumer confidence. To find updates of retailer-specific store closures, click here.

Woolies has launched its next tranche of Good Business Journey sustainability goals, these ones focusing on traceability, transparency, circularity, diversity and inclusivity, and energy and carbon emissions. “We believe that setting ambitious sustainability goals, such as the ones we are announcing today, not only stretches and challenges our own business to do more but also inspires others to collaborate and join the cause for good,” says (relatively) new CEO Roy Bagattini. Launched in 2007, the GBJ focuses on improving nine key areas of the business: energy, water, waste, sustainable farming, ethical sourcing, transformation, social development, packaging and health and wellness, with over 200 targets supporting these areas. It has already significantly reduced the business’ environmental impact and increased its social and economic impact across the entire value chain, with a cumulative financial impact of almost R2bn in savings since its inception.

Comment: The GBJ has been a strategic and marketing triumph for Woolworths. The renewed emphasis on diversity and inclusivity goals could not be more timely.

From our friends and colleagues at Smollan Holdings, who recently ran an internal trends workshop, here are six key drivers for retail in the months and years ahead, paraphrased by us.
Direct-to-consumer: Brands are embracing strategies that allow them to engage directly with and sell to consumers. This enables them to control the overall customer experience and collect consumer data, improve their offering and build a stronger brand identity. However, while the lockdowns of the past 18 months have driven a rise in e-commerce, other direct to consumer approaches remain under-indexed.
Employee experience: Pandemic work regimes have produced a workforce ready to flex, demanding less rigid work schedules, unlimited leave or a combination of these elements. Co-designing the post-pandemic work environment with one’s employees is critical.
Strategic collaborations: Companies with compatible values – from brands, to retailers, to social media platforms – come together leveraging one another’s assets or audiences to accomplish a common goal.
Minimal impact: Today’s conscious consumers are buying with less frequency and more mindfully, supporting plastic-free and cruelty-free products and shorter routes-to-market.
Holistic wellbeing: Consumers are embracing preventative care, self-monitoring and holistic wellness, and experimenting with ways to improve their personal consumption and lifestyle habits.
Optimising the last mile: Due to the exponential growth of e-commerce and demand for speedy delivery, last mile efficiency is equally as important as customer service; as a result, warehousing, distribution and delivery models are transforming to streamline operations, embracing automation technologies and novel delivery methods.

Comment: As sharp a summation of what’s driving retailers and the consumers they serve as any we’ve seen, speaking lots of good ideas for brand development and retail execution.

Is anyone else secretly relieved to find that the tear Amazon has been on since COVID kicked off is starting to wind down? While its second quarter profits came in strong, its third quarter projections have disappointed analysts on the downside: those worthies were looking for something close to $120bn but will be lucky to get $112bn. In other news from the digital frontier, Carrefour is in negotiations to buy a minority stake in Cajoo, which specialises in delivering online grocery orders in – wait for it – under 15 minutes, freeing the French up to conduct their gloomy affairs and hang out philosophically in cafés rather than sticking around waiting for the shopping to show up. In Germany, Lidl has announced that it has succeeded in removing over a billion pieces of plastic from its stores, including 24 million plastic trays and punnets, and up to 25 million plastic lids. And in the UK, a shortage of delivery staff caused by Brexit and a lack of driver’s tests during COVID has prompted the likes of Tesco and Aldi to commence offering starting bonuses and better wages to keep the wheels spinning and the packages bumping along.

Comment: One unexpected consequence of the pandemic is the new power it has placed in the hands of labour in some sectors.

Did you know that the volume unit for tobacco products is the stick? Us neither. The skyf, we’d have thought, or the entjie, but no. And British American Tobacco was eager to inform us this week that it has sold 316 billion of the little blighters in the six months through June, indicating a global recovery from any COVID-related unpleasantness for the industry, particularly in emerging markets and even more particularly in South Africa. It has also seen an uptick in the sales of vapour brands like glo, Velo and Vuse – the last of which replaces Twisp, which BAT acquired back in the halcyon days of 2019. Here in the Beloved Country, the tobacco wars rage on, with the South African Tobacco Organisation (SATO) proposing a minimum price of R22 for a pack of cigarettes, and BATSA calling for a minimum retail price of R28, to cut down on illicit trade.

Comment: The ongoing, erm, health of the tobacco industry is a continuous source of amazement and wonder.

Another business snapping back from COVID is Mondelez, owner of such brands as Oreo, Cadbury, and Toblerone, which has revised its full-year organic revenue forecast, as emerging markets like China and Brazil kick it up a notch. The segment of the business under which such markets fall brought in $2.29bn in the second quarter, +20% up from last year; accordingly, the business is ramping up capacity and increasing production lines at existing facilities to meet demand while controlling costs in a still-uncertain world. COVID lockdowns across the world saw people limiting their shopping trips and their impulse purchases, particularly in developing economies, and this hit sales for Mondelez.

Comment: As consumers in more mature markets turn their gaze onto healthier snacking, businesses like Mondelez will increase their focus elsewhere.

A tip of the iconic South African bucket hat to the IMF this week, who has seen fit to revise our growth prospects for the year upward from 3.1% to 4%, with an unchanged outlook for sub-Saharan Africa at +3.4% and a global outlook hanging steady at +6%. The dear old South African Reserve Bank believes we’ll do even better, at +3.4%. However, the north/south divide remains worrying – as developed economies roar back to life under the vaccine rollout, many countries with a patchier record and surging cases are being left behind. Exacerbating this discrepancy are the deep coffers of countries like the US, which are able to subsidise rents and send stimulus checks at a time when developing countries are slowly starting to rebuild their fiscal buffers.

Comment: Like all global events, the pandemic has produced both winners and losers, with the contrasts between the two only now coming into focus.