JSE-listed retailer Shoprite, which also owns Checkers and Boxers, is spending a lot of money to survive load shedding.
The retailetr said whilst it remained encouraged by continued customer growth and continued
market share gains, it was faced with several challenges imnpacting its performamnce.
Shoprite said it remained resolute in terms of its commitment to lower-prices and value for customers during the second half period.
“As such, the Group’s full year gross margin will be lower than that reported last year (restated 2022: 24.5%), however the decline is expected to be less than the gross margin decline reported in our 2023 interim results.
Shoprite said the cost of diesel to power generators during load-shedding across its Supermarkets RSA store base amounted to R1.3 billion.
“It is important to note that this cost became significant at higher stages of load-shedding which occurred from September 2022,” said Shoprite.
For the 52 weeks to 2 July 2023, Shoprite ncreased total sale of merchandise by 16.9% to R215 billion. The Group added a net 340 stores during the period to total 3 324 stores from continuing operations.
The retailer said Checkers and Checkers Hyper reported sales growth of 18.0%, while Shoprite and Usave reported sales growth of 15.6%.
The LiquorShop sales increased by 30.8%. First half sales growth of 35.6% was elevated due to Covid-19 lockdown closures in the prior year period. Second half sales increased by 25.9%.
The Group opened four Medirite Plus standalone stores during the period ending the year with six standalone stores and 134 Medirite pharmacies located within our supermarkets business.
