Online shopping continues to surge in South Africa, so much so that one e-commerce giant is now looking to capitalise by setting up local operations for the first time. With competition set to soon heat up in an e-commerce space that has yet to reach maturity here are five online shops worth keeping an eye on in 2024.
Makro
Makro has evolved in the retail space from a stalwart warehouse chain to now being able to offer customers an online shopping hub with food, the latest electronics, houseware, camping and outdoor equipment among other items. With a total of 22 Makro stores in South Africa, 2024 also marks a decade since the first release of its e-commerce platform. Furthering its online offering, Makro owner Massmart recently launched a new online platform with aims to make it a one stop shop for businesses facing similar economic challenges to end consumers. With Makro already ranking highly for online sales in South Africa it will be intriguing to see if Makro Business can further boost its e-commerce segment in the year ahead.
Takealot
Takealot.com has been operating for well over a decade now, having launched following the successful acquisition of an existing e-commerce business called Take2 by the US-based investment firm, Tiger Global Management and Kim Reid. Today, takealot.com is a leading e-commerce retailer in South Africa and was actually rated as the most popular online shop by local consumers last year. Since its inception the business has rapidly evolved, opening and expanding warehouses in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town, while expanding its product selection to over 21 departments across Electronics, Lifestyle, Media & Gaming and Fashion. Having played a significant role in the wider growth of South Africa’s e-commerce market to date, it is this local presence, established infrastructure and understanding of the domestic market that continues to make it a major player today.
Clicks
Clicks continues to be the country’s leading health, beauty and wellness retailer with 31% of consumers making a purchase from its online shop last year. In recent times, the group has seen solid growth in private label sales as well as a recovery in the beauty category while its ClubCard Loyalty programme has grown to 10.4 million active members. In addition to recent takeovers, which include 24-hour pharmacy M-Kem and pharmacy software development company 180 Degrees, Clicks has said it plans to open multiple new stores and pharmacies in 2024. It has also set aside R393 million for further investment in supply chain, technology and infrastructure. With that being said, it is definitely one to watch in the year ahead.
Superbalist
Superbalist is part of the Naspers group, which is on a drive for profitability in its e-commerce businesses by 2025. The shopping platform boasts several innovative features including Fit Finder, an intuitive size-guide tool that helps customers make the right sizing choices when shopping from any one the partnered brands. This advanced sizing technology, powered by Fit Analytics GmbH, has been designed to make the process of online shopping easier and more accurate. Among recent partnerships, it boasts a deal with H&M that gives online shoppers across South Africa exclusive access to the fashion retailer. Superbalist offers multiple payment methods such as debit, credit, Payflex, and Mobicred. Customers can have their order delivered to their door or even collect at various designated Click + Collect Pickup Points across the country.
Amazon
A list of online stores is not complete without mentioning this global e-commerce powerhouse. The year ahead promises to be a particularly exciting one for Amazon in this part of the world. In October, it announced that it was preparing to launch its online shopping service in South Africa in a bid to tap further into the country’s ongoing e-commerce boom. It means that South Africa will become only the second African country after Egypt where the e-commerce giant has set up a locally-dedicated website. With the imminent intensification of Amazon’s operations in South Africa, consumers can expect both practices and standards to rise in line with continued growth of the domestic e-commerce landscape this year.
