JSE-listed food retailers in South Africa continue to pursue omnichannel strategies in a bid to provide customers with a seamless shopping experience using a multichannel approach.
The latest big retailer to venture into new territory is the Shoprite Group. The company announced that it had launched Uniq, a new clothing brand.
The first standalone Uniq store opened in Cape Town’s Canal Walk shopping centre today, with another eight stores scheduled to open in the next month.
Catering for the whole family, the Uniq range consists of basic items in a variety of colours and fabrics that are easy to mix and match, the group said.
“Uniq has sourced materials specifically engineered for comfort and convenience, and it is the first local clothing retailer to introduce Supima cotton to the mass market,” Shoprite said on Thursday.
It said that with longer fibres than ordinary cotton, Supima cotton was stronger, softer, and absorbed colour better.
According to the global retail omnichannel commerce Platform Market report 2022-2026, several leading retailers are adopting a retail omnichannel strategy to tap the e-commerce opportunity and also drive traffic and sales in physical stores.
“The potential of an omnichannel strategy is also being realised by small and mid-sized retailers, who are investing in the platform to survive the intensely competitive conditions,” the report said.
The Uniq launch range includes:
- An collection of T-shirts (priced from R149) including a standard, slim and oversized fit.
- Womenswear such as modal-blend leggings which contain 10% elastane (R199 each), brushed-fleece joggers (R299 each), cosy knits, sleepwear and more.
- Menswear such as fleecetech jackets, hoodies and bottoms, including the comeback kid – corduroy pants and shirt jackets.
- Children’s basics (ages 3 – 13) in muted tones which are mirrored on the adult lines, so parents can have fun twinning with their mini-mes.
- Responsibly sourced down-filled puffer jackets (from R799).
- Underwear for men and women.
A Uniq checkout experience
The group said Uniq was the first clothing retailer in South Africa to offer self-service checkout.
Smart tags and advanced radio-frequency identification (RFID) enable customers to scan and pay for items.
Trained staff will assist customers on the sales floor, with an average of nine new jobs created with the opening of every Uniq store.
Eight more standalone stores will be opened at the following locations in the next month:
- Ballito Junction Mall (Ballito, KwaZulu-Natal)
- Secunda Mall (Secunda, Mpumalanga)
- Table Bay Mall (Cape Town, Western Cape)
- Mall@Reds Shopping Centre (Pretoria, Gauteng)
- The Grove Mall (Pretoria, Gauteng)
- Galleria Mall (eManzimtoti, KwaZulu-Natal)
- Chartwell Corner (Dainfern, Gauteng)
- Menlyn Park (Pretoria, Gauteng)
Will you be shopping at the Shoprite Group's new clothing store, UNIQ?
— Business Report (@busrep) March 30, 2023
BUSINESS REPORT