Africa’s biggest food and grocer, Shoprite, on Tuesday said the company plans to open 30 new supermarkets in other parts of Africa by June next year.
“This we do in the firm belief that the rest of Africa will assume greater significance in plotting our way forward,” Whitey Basson, Shoprite CEO, said as the company released results for the year-ended June 2014.
Shoprite said profits for the year ended June this year were satisfactory given the tough trading conditions during the period under review.
Profit during the period under review moved up 6 percent to R5.714 billion ($536 million) while turnover surged 10.5 percent to R102.2 billion ($9.5 billion).
Basson said the year under review was one in which the company invested heavily in the future of the group wanting to capitalise on the next upswing in the economy.
“We achieved more than R100 billion in turnover for the first time. Market share increased for the 8th consecutive year. The group invested in a net 125 new corporate stores in the supply-line infrastructure to support them,” Basson said.
“A turnover growth of more than 10 percent is no small achievement, given prevailing trading conditions. This was achieved in an environment of constantly rising costs, especially in the areas of electricity and energy over which we have no control,” he added.
