While clothing retailers' sales picked up in the July to December period, they are still at lower levels than previous years. Phakamisa Ndzamela reports, taking Woolworths, Truworths and The Foschini Group into account, noting that these companies have been keeping prices low to try and support volumes, as well as diversifying geographically. Having surveyed the expansion plans of 115 leading retailers, CBRE states that South Africa is still a preferred location for international brands. Preston Gaddy from Broll says that whichever region or city it may be, the underlying fact is that organic growth in their home markets is somewhat limited. Even though Eastern Europe, Asia and South America are also on their radar, he says many European and Middle Eastern retailers continue to acknowledge Africa as a key area for expansion. In other news, BizTrends is back, this time covering all industries and featuring the likes of: Jon Copestake who unpacks a report published by the Economist Intelligence Unit, titled Industries in 2016, with a global focus on the retail market; Justin Smith from Woolworths on conscious consumerism in the retail space and Jenna McArthur of er Jenna McArthur PR on the next big thing in fashion PR. For more trends pieces related to other industries, go to Bizcommunity.com/BizTrends.
Jessica Taylor, Retail Editor (@Biz_Retail)
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