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Cape Town - Shoprite Checkers celebrated the opening of its 1 000th supermarket in Africa when a new generation Checkers store opened its doors at Zevenwacht in Kuils River, Cape Town, on Thursday.
This supermarket is one of the 129 new supermarkets that the group will open across Africa between July 2013 and June 2014. Twenty of them will be outside South Africa’s borders
Commenting on this significant milestone, Shoprite Group CEO Whitey Basson said that it was fitting for the 1 000th supermarket in the group to be branded Checkers since he regarded the acquisition of the ailing Checkers chain of 170 supermarkets in 1991 to be one of the biggest challenges in his retail career that spans four decades.
“The eight Shoprite supermarkets we purchased during November 1979 was only the start of the development of what today is the largest supermarket chain in South Africa and the African continent.
"We realised that to fast-track the group’s growth trajectory we had to embark on a series of acquisitions and turn those businesses into profitability fast. We also wanted to be the supermarket group with the lowest prices in the country.
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“This strategy has paid off for us. It placed us at the forefront of supermarket retailing in Africa and now we have a business with over 1 460 outlets on the continent consisting of supermarket brands serving consumers across all income groups, as well as furniture stores, liquor stores and a growing fast food chain,” Basson said.
According to the latest AMPS research (July 2013) 70% of adults in the country now shop at Shoprite Checkers, serving the largest customer base in South Africa with 26 million shoppers.
Commenting on jobs the group has created, Basson said: "Looking back, what is even more gratifying than having built a company with a turnover of R93bn and a market capitalisation of R100bn, is that we were able to not only save the jobs of thousands of people in those companies we took over, but also create many more opportunities for people to earn a living and in turn provide a future for generations after them.
This supermarket is one of the 129 new supermarkets that the group will open across Africa between July 2013 and June 2014. Twenty of them will be outside South Africa’s borders
Commenting on this significant milestone, Shoprite Group CEO Whitey Basson said that it was fitting for the 1 000th supermarket in the group to be branded Checkers since he regarded the acquisition of the ailing Checkers chain of 170 supermarkets in 1991 to be one of the biggest challenges in his retail career that spans four decades.
“The eight Shoprite supermarkets we purchased during November 1979 was only the start of the development of what today is the largest supermarket chain in South Africa and the African continent.
"We realised that to fast-track the group’s growth trajectory we had to embark on a series of acquisitions and turn those businesses into profitability fast. We also wanted to be the supermarket group with the lowest prices in the country.
Save jobs
“This strategy has paid off for us. It placed us at the forefront of supermarket retailing in Africa and now we have a business with over 1 460 outlets on the continent consisting of supermarket brands serving consumers across all income groups, as well as furniture stores, liquor stores and a growing fast food chain,” Basson said.
According to the latest AMPS research (July 2013) 70% of adults in the country now shop at Shoprite Checkers, serving the largest customer base in South Africa with 26 million shoppers.
Commenting on jobs the group has created, Basson said: "Looking back, what is even more gratifying than having built a company with a turnover of R93bn and a market capitalisation of R100bn, is that we were able to not only save the jobs of thousands of people in those companies we took over, but also create many more opportunities for people to earn a living and in turn provide a future for generations after them.
