Table of Contents
Key Points
- Pick n Pay cut its full-year loss by 77.7% to $42.4 million, powered by Boxer’s growth and efficiency gains following a major recapitalization.
- Revenue rose to $6.8 billion in fiscal year 2025, up 5.86%, with Boxer contributing a $128.9 million trading profit and group profit surging fourfold year-on-year.
- Despite progress, Pick n Pay expects its core unit to reach break-even only by full-year 2028, as it pushes to restore profitability and investor confidence.
Pick ‘n Pay, one of South Africa’s leading supermarket chains, partly owned by the billionaire Ackerman family, reported R118.6 billion ($6.8 billion) in revenue for the 53 weeks ended March 2, 2025, as it made significant progress in its financial and operational recovery.
The group sharply narrowed its full-year attributable loss by 77.7 percent to R736 million ($42.4 million), down from R3.3 billion ($190.2 million) a year earlier, buoyed by improved margins and robust growth at its Boxer division.
Boxer leads rebound as core losses shrink
According to its audited annual financial statements, the revenue of the retail giant rose 5.86 percent from R115.37 billion ($6.46 billion) in 2024 to R118.6 billion ($6.8 billion) in the full-year 2025, driven largely by a 13.2-percent increase at low-cost brand Boxer. On a comparable 52-week basis, turnover climbed 3.2 percent.
Boxer delivered a R2.3 billion ($128.87 million) trading profit, propelling group trading profit to R1.76 billion ($98.56 million)—more than quadrupling the R405 million ($22.69 million) posted the previous year.
Meanwhile, the core Pick n Pay segment narrowed its trading loss to R549 million ($30.76 million) from R1.5 billion ($84.05 million), and returned to profitability in the second half. Net finance costs declined by 2.1 percent as recapitalization eased interest burdens, offsetting increased lease interest tied to Boxer’s expansion.
Recapitalization unlocks value
Pick n Pay raised R12.5 billion through a R4 billion ($210 million) rights issue and R8.5 billion ($476.28 million) via Boxer’s separate listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. The group ended the fiscal year with R4.2 billion ($235.36 million) in net cash, reversing earlier liquidity strain. Boxer’s post-listing valuation of roughly R30 billion ($1.68 billion)signals strong investor confidence in the division’s growth trajectory, as it continues to outperform its parent brand.
CEO Sean Summers, brought back to lead the group’s turnaround, has extended his term to May 2028. “The ultimate success of my tenure will be judged in 5- and 10-years’ time,” Summers said. “This is a marathon, not a sprint.” Chairman Gareth Ackerman will step down from the board in August 2025 after 15 years in the role, transitioning to a non-independent non-executive director.
Recovery outlook remains cautious
Based in Cape Town, Pick n Pay operates more than 2,000 stores across eight African countries. The Ackerman family holds a 25.53 percent stake, equivalent to 124.7 million shares. Total assets dipped slightly by 0.22 percent to R46.81 billion ($2.62 billion), while retained earnings surged over tenfold, from R646 million ($36.19 million) to R7.3 billion ($409.06 million).
In the eight weeks post-year-end, the South African segment showed early momentum, with like-for-like sales rising 3.8 percent. Company-owned stores grew 4 percent, and franchise outlets gained 2.1 percent. Still, management warned the core retail unit’s path to profitability will take longer than expected, with break-even at a trading profit-after-lease-interest level now forecast for full-year 2028—one year behind earlier guidance.
With Boxer sustaining strong growth and early efficiency gains emerging across the group, Pick n Pay remains focused on returning to profitability and regaining investor confidence.
