Pick n Pay, a leading South African supermarket chain controlled by the wealthy Ackerman family, reported single-digit sales growth at the end of its fiscal year 2022, driven by an increase in liquor and clothing sales during the period under review.
Pick n Pay is the country’s second-largest retailer. The Cape Town-based retail behemoth operates over 2,000 stores across eight African countries.
Members of the Ackerman family, which includes Raymond Ackerman, who founded the retailer in 1967, and Gareth Ackerman, the group’s chairman, own a beneficial 25.53-percent stake in the leading retailer, or 124,677,238 issued shares.
According to a trading update released by the Cape Town-based retail behemoth, group sales increased by 5.2 percent to R97.9 billion ($6.67 billion), up from R93.1 billion ($6.35 billion) reported in 2021.
On a market basis, its South African operation increased its revenue by 5.1 percent to R94.5 billion, with 4.4-percent growth in like-for-like sales during the period under review, while sales from other segments across Africa increased by 5.6 percent and 8.7 percent on a constant currency basis.
The group’s trading performance was disrupted throughout the year by severe damage to trading and property as a result of civil unrest in July 2021 and – to a lesser extent – the resumption of trading restrictions.
These disruptions cost the group an estimated R2.7 billion ($183.2 million) in losses for the year.
After diverting resources to rebuilding stores and distribution centers following the civil unrest, the group opened 138 new stores across all operating environments, and they have all delivered on the group’s diverse portfolio’s growth ambitions.
Despite disruptions in its operating environment and recent global supply chain issues that resulted in an increase in the price of items and key commodities during the year, Pick n Pay was able to deliver on its commitment to provide customers with lower prices and better value, with internal selling price inflation limited to 2.9 percent over the year.
