Industry revenue of “retail trade in non-specialised stores with food, beverages and tobacco predominating“ in South Africa 2011-2023

Total revenues of retail trade in food, beverages and tobacco in non-specialised stores in South Africa are projected to increase from 14 billion U.S. dollars in 2011 to nearly 35 billion U.S. dollars by 2023. Among the main drivers include a growing agro-processing industry, high prevalence of tobacco users and the rising demand for beverages such as beer. In fact, South Africa is the leading country in terms of beer production in Africa, having produced over 31 million hectoliters in 2018, with a per capita consumption of 9.3 litres.

Additionally, the sector has also benefitted from the rise in the number of supermarkets and retail chains. A good example is international retailer SPAR which has rapidly expanded in the country and currently has over 880 supermarket store chains, with retail sales of over 4.9 billion euros. This places South Africa among the top five markets for SPAR in terms of number of stores. Overall, the country’s food retail market is very concentrated with the top seven companies Shoprite, Pick n Pay, Massmart, Spar, Woolworths, the Food Lovers Market, and Choppies, accounting for over 80% of all revenues.