Don’t let downtime steal your Black Friday sales
As retailers and enterprises across South Africa prepare for the annual Black Friday surge on 28 November, network resilience is once again in sharp focus. For many organisations, the festive trading season is the ultimate stress test, one where downtime can have...
Cautious consumers set the tone for Black Friday 2025
South Africa’s technology and durables (T&D) manufacturers and retailers will face fierce competition for the consumer’s rand during the upcoming Black Friday promotional period, with NIQ South Africa forecasting relatively flat growth in terms of units and...
Vulnerable SA retailers in for brutal peak season
South African retailers face a perfect cybersecurity storm as they gear up for an extended peak season. The busiest time of year will see head offices at their most vulnerable as cyber criminals target overworked staff who are desperate to ensure sales are maximised...
Black Friday payment realities for merchants
Online retail in South Africa is no longer a peripheral activity; it is a structural force in the economy. The market is on track to surpass R130-billion this year, approaching 10% of total retail sales. By Joshua Shimkin, head of growth and marketing at Peach...
AI breaks new ground for the retail industry
AI is a foundational technology in the retail sector. Niel Coetzee, technical director at redPanda Software Deployed to enhance personalisation, operational efficiency and optimise workflows and planning, AI solutions are rapidly becoming practical, enterprise-scale...
SA’s retail revolution demands a cyber resilience reckoning
South Africa's retail landscape stands at a digital crossroads. The sector's increasing transformation, from traditional brick-and-mortar operations to sophisticated omnichannel ecosystems, is unlocking unprecedented opportunities for growth, customer engagement, and...
How under-siege retailers can fight cybercrime and fraud
So far in 2025, South African retailers are facing an unprecedented wave of cybercrime and fraud, as businesses battle a sophisticated and ever-evolving threat landscape. By Chandni Gopal, partner, Aaqilah Nagdee, senior associate, and Precious Maphupha, candidate...
The Black Friday remix: what 2025 will look like
In 2024, Black Friday stopped being an imported promo day in South Africa and started dictating terms. It was a supercharged, concentrated surge of shopping that reset expectations and rewired retail playbooks. By Rory Bosman, chief sales and marketing officer at...
Township entrepreneurs turn to fintechs to bridge the digital payments divide
South Africa’s informal economy has for long been largely cash-based. This is changing with spaza shop owners leading the way when it comes to the adoption of digital payments. By Annelene Dippenaar, chief business officer at Shop2Shop While there are still hurdles to...
Retailers must lock down every data door to survive Black Friday
As local retailers gear up for Black Friday – the year’s biggest shopping event – the rush to process payments, manage stock and serve customers across multiple branches leaves many exposed to a surge in cyber threats. By Hemant Harie, group chief technology officer...
What every SME needs ahead of Black Friday
For South African SMEs, the final quarter of the year is more than just a busy season, it is a proving ground. It is when strategy meets execution, and when the right decisions can unlock real growth. By Mpho Sadiki, MD: merchant services Africa at Network...
Innovation without fragility: retail’s balancing act
The global retail sector, projected to reach $35,2-trillion in 2025, has digital channels driving more than 60% of influenced sales and each successful click and customer collection is the result of a thousand moving parts. Peter Ludi, business development executive...