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Sectors · Retail across SADC

Retail in South Africa

Who sells where, which chains are expanding, what each catchment holds and where shoppers are underserved.

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Value added by trade, restaurants and hotels, 2024US$49.9bn13.8% of the economy · 1st largest of 16 in SADC
Real growth-1.1%a year over the last five years, at constant prices
Exports of the pillar's goods, 2024US$8.9bn+16% on five years earlier · 1st in SADC
Deals in the last 12 months410 tracked in South Africa in all

Trade, restaurants and hotels added US$49.9bn to South Africa's economy in 2024

Value added by trade, restaurants and hotels, the industries in the national accounts closest to retail, US$, at the prices of each year and at constant 2020 prices (which show real growth)

0$20bn$40bn$60bn199019921994199619982000200220042006200820102012201420162018202020222024Prices of each yearUS$49.9bnConstant 2020 pricesUS$43.1bn
Source: UN Statistics Division·dotzedw Insights Centre

South Africa has SADC's 1st largest trade, restaurants and hotels sector

Value added by trade, restaurants and hotels, US$, latest year, with its share of each economy

South AfricaUS$49.9bn13.8% of the economy
AngolaUS$23.5bn20.5% of the economy
DRCUS$11.7bn16.7% of the economy
TanzaniaUS$8.3bn10.9% of the economy
ZimbabweUS$6.6bn15.2% of the economy
ZambiaUS$4.9bn20.4% of the economy
BotswanaUS$2.9bn15.9% of the economy
MauritiusUS$2.4bn18.5% of the economy
MozambiqueUS$2.0bn10.0% of the economy
MadagascarUS$1.9bn11.7% of the economy
NamibiaUS$1.7bn14.3% of the economy
MalawiUS$1.4bn12.3% of the economy
EswatiniUS$793m17.2% of the economy
SeychellesUS$341m18.7% of the economy
ComorosUS$317m20.9% of the economy
LesothoUS$198m9.6% of the economy
Source: UN Statistics Division·dotzedw Insights Centre

Population: South Africa against SADC

Population, people, latest year for each country. Click a bar for that country's retail page.

020m40m60m80m100m120mDRC112.8mTanzania70.5mSouth Africa64.7mAngola39.0mMozambique35.6mMadagascar32.7mMalawi22.2mZambia21.9mZimbabwe17.0mNamibia3.1mBotswana2.6mLesotho2.4mEswatini1.3mMauritius1.2mComoros883kSeychelles123kmedian 19.4m

Source: World Bank·dotzedw Insights Centre

South Africa's trade in retail goods since 2012

Exports and imports of the products in this pillar's subsectors, each product counted once, US$

0$10bn$20bn$30bn2012201420162018202020222024ExportsUS$8.9bnImportsUS$23.2bn
Source: CEPII BACI·dotzedw Insights Centre

Where it sits

How productive retail is in South Africa, and where it is made

Output per worker in South Africa, 2024

Value added per person working in each industry, US$, 2024, with each industry's share of output and of jobs. Change is over five years at constant prices.

Share of outputShare of jobs
IndustryOutput and jobsPer workerSADC medianRank in SADCFive-year change
Trade, restaurants and hotels13.8% · 20.4%US$13,687US$7,0453 of 15-8.7%
All industries18m people workingUS$20,248US$5,2083 of 15-2.9%
Source: UN Statistics Division and ILO·dotzedw Insights Centre

Retail's share of output in each province of South Africa

GDP at current prices, 2024: each province's share of the national total, and its real growth, with wholesale and retail trade, hotels and restaurants as a share of the province's output

ProvinceShare of South Africa's outputReal growthWholesale and retail trade, hotels and restaurants
GautengCity map33.2%+0.8%12.3%
KwaZulu-NatalCity map16.1%+0.4%12.4%
Western CapeCity map14.2%+0.7%13.4%
Limpopo7.8%+0.9%12.3%
Mpumalanga7.7%+0.3%12.2%
Eastern Cape7.6%-0.2%14.6%
North West6.3%-0.1%10.6%
Free State5.0%+0.5%11.1%
Northern Cape2.2%-0.1%11.4%
dotzedw Insights Centre

Statistics South Africa, Provincial gross domestic product, 2024 (P0441.2). Figures for 2022 to 2024 are preliminary. Sources and method

Subsectors

10 in this pillar

Grocery and household goods in South Africa

Tracks
Supermarket and small-shop chains and their outlets, chains new to each country, packaged food and household goods imported and exported by value and weight, and growth in household spending.
Signals ahead
Growing suburbs with no supermarket within 15 minutes, mall announcements, chains' expansion guidance.
Chains new in the last year0since 2025-12

Select a figure for its trend. Source: CEPII BACI, All The Places, World Bank, dotzedw deals tracker.

Trade in detail

South Africa exported US$5.1bn and imported US$4.3bn of grocery and household goods in 2024; exports up 23% on five years earlier, 57.4% of what SADC sells abroad.

South Africa's main exports in this subsector, 2024

Wine (220421)US$457m
Sugar (170114)US$364m
Wine (220429)US$198m
Food preparations (210690)US$190m
Detergents and surfactants (340290)US$166m

South Africa's trade in grocery and household goods every year since 2012, by partner is part of the Individual plan

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Open these deals in the deals tracker

What South Africa sells abroad across retail

South Africa's exports by subsector, 2024, US$, with its share of SADC's exports. A product can count in two subsectors.

Grocery and household goodsUS$5.1bn57.4% of SADC · +23% on five years earlier
Fuel forecourts and convenienceUS$2.2bn51.8% of SADC · +16% on five years earlier
Clothing, furniture and general merchandiseUS$1.2bn36.2% of SADC · -3% on five years earlier
Pharmacy retailUS$482m92% of SADC · +11% on five years earlier
Source: CEPII BACI·dotzedw Insights Centre

Who is moving

Open in the deals tracker

4 deals in the last 12 months involving South Africa, placed in subsectors by what they say.

Sources and method