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...
Retailers urged to rethink connectivity
Retail in South Africa is changing. As customers become more digitally empowered, the traditional, staff-led in-store experience is being replaced with self-service, smartphone-driven journeys. By Tobie van Schalkwyk, business unit lead at Duxbury Networking Shoppers...
Smart retailers are saying no to vendor lock-in
In 2025, the South African retail sector has seen a 4,2% year-on-year increase and the ecommerce sector is anticipated to reach R225-billion, a 150% growth over the past five years. Peter Ludi, business development executive at redPanda Software and Solutions...
Peach Payments announces real-time clearance payouts
Peach Payments has launched real-time clearance (RTC) payouts for all merchants on its platform in South Africa. The new payouts solution lets merchants top up their float and disburse payments in just minutes. Rahul Jain, CEO and co-founder of Peach Payments, says:...