By Nqobile Dludla
South Africa’s biggest e-commerce retailer, Takealot, has hired thousands of personal shoppers to help it penetrate townships and rural areas and fend off increased competition from global rivals, its CEO told Reuters.
Attracted by growth potential and South Africa’s strategic position, companies have invested in the country’s price-conscious e-commerce market. Among the international names that have made inroads are Chinese fast-fashion retailers Temu and Shein.
A few months after PDD’s Temu started selling into South Africa in January, U.S. retail giant Amazon followed suit in May.
“You can’t argue that they had an impact on the overall retail environment,” Frederik Zietsman, Takealot Group CEO told Reuters, referring to the Chinese players and Amazon. “I think more dramatically, the cost of doing business has gone up significantly.”
Companies regard South Africa as an entry point to expand into the continent because it has more mobile internet users, higher
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