SHOPRITE IS TAKING ANOTHER BUSINESS ONLINE: HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

The Shoprite Group says it is expanding its ecommerce presence by taking its Petshop Science brand online.

This, it said, comes as the pet economy continues to grow in South Africa – in just one year, Petshop Science has opened 22 physical stores around the country.

Petshop Science Online offers a broad selection of more than 2,000 pet-related products including food, treats, toys, and more from premium brands like Hills, Montego, Dog’s Life, Eukanuba, Ultra Dog, Royal Canin, Rogz and Nandoe.

With the pet sector in South Africa now reportedly worth over R7 billion, Shoprite said it continues to expand its pet-related offerings. It launched pet insurance in 2020 – from just R69 per month, and in 2021 it opened its first standalone pet shop store.

“We’ve been working hard to deliver superior service, range, and value to local pet parents. With the launch of Petshop Science Online, we’re adding another way for South Africans to access all of this – but without leaving their homes,” said Mark Cotton, head of eCommerce at Shoprite.

Petshop Science customers can now also create online profiles for their pets, which include their pet’s name, birth date, type and breed. Customers can access these profiles in stores, and it enables PetShop Science to serve loyal shoppers with special offers tailored to their pets’ needs, he said.

Delivery is free for orders over R450, the group said, while a R75 delivery fee will apply to orders less than this. Orders placed by 16h00 within a 60km radius from Cape Town CBD and Sandton will qualify for next-day delivery.

Shoprite on Tuesday (26 July), reported strong sales in an operational update for the 52 weeks to 3 July 2022. The group said it increased the total sale of merchandise by 9.6% to approximately R184.1 billion. Taking into account the additional week of sales included as part of the prior year’s 53-week reporting period, the group increased 2022 sales by 11.9% on a 52-week basis.

During the period, excluding the impact of store closures as a result of the July 2021 civil unrest, the group added a net 127 stores to its corporate store base to a total of 2,476 stores from continuing operations.

Its core business, Supermarkets RSA, contributing 80% to group sales achieved sales growth of 10.1% (like-for-like 8.5%). On a 52-week basis, sales increased by 12.6%.

The group’s other operating segments include OK Franchise, Transpharm, MediRite Pharmacies, Computicket and Checkers Food Services, saw sales increase by 8.5% for the period, contributing 7% to group sales.