The Franchise Association of South Africa's latest franchise survey, shows that of all the business formats and across all sectors, franchising, through its unique business format, continues to show growth and resilience despite challenging conditions - with an estimated turnover of R721 billion equivalent to 15,7% of the total South African GDP. 25 Sep 2018
Clover SA has partnered with Bluegrass Digital to rebuild its corporate B2B and B2C website. The company has been consolidating its corporate digital assets onto a single technology stack and has also migrated all the Clover websites to the Cloud on Microsoft Azure. 25 Sep 2018
The Kiddie Company is South Africa's latest online baby store with an exclusive range of baby accessories, natural baby products, baby clothes, maternity wear and pre- and post-pregnancy supplies. Your one-stop shop for everything mommy and baby! 21 Sep 2018
Multi-faith environmental NGO Southern African Faith Communities' Environment Institute (SAFCEI) has launched a public campaign urging restaurant franchisor, Famous Brands, to commit to go "cage-free" for all its hens and their eggs by 2025. The campaign commenced with a petition earlier this month in an effort "to eradicate inhumane battery cage farms for hens". 21 Sep 2018
Cashiers asking customers to donate small sums to charity while they're at cash registers, known as checkout charity, is becoming a big business. 21 Sep 2018
German-based food conglomerate Dr. Oetker is set to purchase Wilton Brands, a US baking, cake decorating and candy making brand. The transaction is expected to close before the end of the year. 21 Sep 2018
In #FreshOnTheShelf, we round up some of our favourite food and beverage products that have hit the shelves recently. 20 Sep 2018
As part of H&M's mission to become "truly circular" by 2030, its charitable arm, the H&M Foundation, has opened two hydrothermal textile recycling plants in partnership with The Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel (HKRITA). 20 Sep 2018
British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer, Tesco, has launched a new discount chain called Jack's that's pegged to rival German discounters Aldi and Lidl. 20 Sep 2018
Russia continues to be an important market for South African fresh produce, says the Fresh Produce Exporters' Forum (FPEF). 20 Sep 2018
Despite the challenges presented by changing consumer habits, sugar taxation and increasing public pressure for healthier beverage options on the shelf, the soft drinks industry remains extremely optimistic in its outlook. 19 Sep 2018
South African startup TastePal is ready to scale into other sectors and countries after completing its proof of concept stage with six corporates. 19 Sep 2018
When you think about artificial intelligence and how it will impact our daily life, what are the images you conjure up? Intelligent robot companions that clean and cook and keep you company? A disembodied voice that controls your car, home, TV and your life? You can relax in the afternoon by demanding "Computer, turn the lights down, run me a bath and play death metal". We all relax in different ways. 19 Sep 2018
Owners of small shops in South Africa - in most cases foreigners - have been accused of stocking counterfeit food and food that's past its sell-by date. The issue has been caught up in xenophobic violence, with shop owners targeted by South Africans. There is very little hard data about what's referred to as "fake food" in both the formal and informal sectors. This means the issue is politically charged and dominated by opinions, not evidence. The Conversation Africa's Ina Skosana asked Jane Battersby-Lennard and Gareth Haysom to unpack this issue. 19 Sep 2018
Speaking at this year's annual PriceCheck Awards ceremony, CEO Kevin Tucker noted that the Tech and E-commerce Awards are more important than ever before. He said that while 2018 has been a tough year for retail, it's an industry with massive potential for growth. 18 Sep 2018
South Africans are embracing online shopping, with fashion retail and food delivery services specifically showing enormous promise. Grocery shopping, on the other hand, remains largely a physical activity with fresh produce posing a significant online barrier. 18 Sep 2018
The eight finalists for the Sunday Times Lifestyle Gin Awards have been announced, whittled down by the judging panel from 74 local and international entries. The competition, the result of a partnership between The Sunday Times, Makro and Fitch & Leedes, celebrates the creators and retailers of crafted gins and variants. 18 Sep 2018
South Africans are under financial pressure, as indicated by the latest consumer confidence data. The recently released results of The Conference Board Global Consumer Confidence Survey, conducted in collaboration with Nielsen, reflects a 5-point decrease in South African consumer confidence to 90 in Q2, 2018. 18 Sep 2018
It can be difficult to carve out a competitive advantage in today's cutthroat business environment. For some companies, investments have been focused on creating digital advantage through measures like apps or fancy websites, or improved processes with clever technology to make things run faster and better. 17 Sep 2018
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