Botswana’s Choppies to buy more c-stores in South Africa

Botswana-based retailer Choppies Enterprises, which already operates 39 stores in South Africa, has expressed its interest to acquire 21 Jwayelani stores in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, reported Business Day’s BDLive.

In line with this, Choppies already filed an application with the South African Competition Commission but no further details have been disclosed.

Jwayelani, which started as a butchery, is now a convenience store chain that operates in Durban, Pietermaritzburg, Pinetown, Empangeni, Estcourt, Umzinto, and Flagstaff.

Choppies plans to seize business opportunities in areas with less retail offerings. The local retail sector is dominated by large supermarkets such as Shoprite, Pick n Pay, and Spar.

Choppies CEO Ram Ottapath said that the company aims to expand to 42 stores in the short term and 100 stores in the medium term.

Last year, it opened an 8,000m² fruit and vegetable distribution center in Rustenburg.