In a sea of online shopping, retail must prepare for a phishing frenzy
As South African shoppers and retailers prepare for Black Friday and the festive season, cyber criminals are casting increasingly wider - and more sophisticated - nets. Gilchrist Mushwana, director at BDO South Africa and head of cybersecurity service line, discusses...
Convenience stores must automate or be left behind
Convenience retailers looking to stay relevant must improve, streamline, and automate in-store operations to elevate the customer experience. This is according to Andrew Blatherwick, chairman emeritus and advisor at Relex Solutions. Previously, a convenience store's...
Shift to online drives retail transformation
The demise of brick-and-mortar stores has long been talked about, and the idea seemed to gain momentum during the multiple lockdowns that pushed more South Africans toward online shopping. By Heath Huxtable, executive head of Braintree by Vox While the end of physical...
Bring relationships back to main market retail
Digitalisation within the retail space often goes hand-in-hand with disintermediation. While removing the middleman can be beneficial, in the case of the South African main market, it can lead to damaged relationships and a lack of trust between spaza owners and...
How African online retail will grow to the next level
Digital infrastructure in Africa is gaining traction, and more people can shop online than ever before. According to Charl Fouche, chief operating officer of AfriGIS, the question Africa's online retail customers want answered now is: "How do I get my parcel delivered...
Grocery retail trends to watch out for heading into 2023
As retailers head into 2023, the industry must face many challenges, such as keeping stores and warehouses staffed in what many fear is a foundational readjustment in the labour market. With the food industry constantly evolving, the future of grocery retail is at the...
Reducing retail TTV with an expert partner is essential for success
Improving time to value (TTV), the length of time it takes a new customer to realise and extract value from a product or service, has to be a major priority for savvy retailers. Working with an experienced partner can enable the retailer to rapidly get to scale, be...
Economic turbulence: agile retailers turn crisis into profit opportunities
With no sign of the present economic storm subsiding, small and medium-sized retailers need to identify ways to turn today's multiple crises into opportunities for growth. Evolving consumer tastes, new market pain points and emerging technologies all offer compelling...
Micros SA launches e-gifting global ecosystem platform
Micros South Africa, in conjunction with Singapore-based CPR Vision Management, this week launched an e-gifting platform designed to help companies in the hospitality industry increase direct and repeat business, acquire new customers, and reward and win back existing...
SMEs can start preparing for Black Friday now
Whether you believe Black Friday and Cyber Monday are expected to grow or shrink, it's not a season that retailers - particularly SMEs - can ignore. "Over the years we've seen businesses of all sizes enjoy sales spikes when they've prepared their store for the rush,"...
Agile retailers turn crisis into opportunity
With no sign of the present economic storm subsiding, small and medium-sized retailers need to identify ways to turn today's multiple crises into opportunities for growth. Evolving consumer tastes, new market pain points and emerging technologies all offer compelling...
Retailers eye smart solutions to energy woes
As South Africa grapples with rising power costs and ongoing loadshedding, many retailers are looking at ways to become more energy efficient and reduce their reliance on the national grid. Although implementing solutions such as solar can be expensive, the return on...