Woolworths, a food and clothing retailer, opened its first supermarket as it seeks to take on Shoprite Holdings and Pick n Pay Stores for customers that shop weekly.
The expansion comes three days after Pick n Pay, usually associated with supermarkets, announced plans to convert 120 BP Express stores in gas-station forecourts into its own outlets over the next five years. Pick n Pay, based in Cape Town, last year opened a store aimed at high-income earners on the same Johannesburg road where the new Woolworths supermarket is situated.
“Woolworths is moving toward the bigger store model to try and gain market share at a time when Pick n Pay is weak,” Avior Research retail analyst Michael McLeod said in an e-mailed response.