After 25 years of operations in Malawi, South Africa’s largest grocery retailer, Shoprite, has closed its stores in the country due to ongoing economic challenges.
Shoprite is set to shut down its operations in Ghana as part of its plans to exit several African countries, including Nigeria, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and focus on its home market.
This is reportedly due to weak currencies, high inflation, expensive import duties, and rent charged in US dollars which made it difficult to operate profitably in the African continent.
Shoprite sold its stores in Malawi under the condition that Karson must retain employees who choose to stay, provide full benefits to those who leave, and submit progress reports every three months for the next two years to demonstrate compliance.
Karson plans to rebrand the stores as “Shopwise Trading Limited” and continue operating in the grocery sector. However, concerns remain about its ability to protect jobs and manage the stores effectively.
