Clicks Group launches KwaMakhi township retail brand
Clicks Group views KwaMakhi as a medium- to long-term growth engine with the potential to expand beyond South Africa over time.
SOUTH AFRICA – Clicks Group has officially entered the township retail segment with the launch of KwaMakhi, a new neighbourhood convenience retail brand designed to serve South Africa’s high-density communities with a smaller, locally focused store format.
The first KwaMakhi outlet opened in Tembisa, Gauteng, with two additional stores following in Khayelitsha and Cravenby in the Western Cape on 28 August, marking the group’s strategic expansion into a fast-growing R900 billion township economy.
Clicks Group CEO Bertina Engelbrecht described KwaMakhi, stating, “KwaMakhi was created because we recognised that the traditional Clicks format cannot reach every community we want to serve.”
“Clicks is a health and beauty destination that requires a significantly larger format to deliver the customer experience that people know and trust.”
Bertina added, “KwaMakhi stores are considerably smaller, allowing us to bring a differentiated customer proposition, store format and merchandise mix tailored to a very specific customer.”
While standard Clicks stores typically range from 550m² to 1,500m², KwaMakhi outlets are approximately 350m², enabling the brand to penetrate dense neighbourhoods such as Alexandra and Soweto with far greater store density, potentially around 10 KwaMakhi stores in areas where only four or five Clicks stores could operate.
This smaller, neighbourhood-centric model allows Clicks Group to accelerate roll-out across a wider set of geographies and participate meaningfully in township spending, which is growing significantly faster than the broader South African retail market.
Product range, pricing and private label
The KwaMakhi assortment spans baby care, front-shop healthcare, beauty, personal care and household essentials, drawing on Clicks’ reputation for trusted quality and value while introducing categories not traditionally found in Clicks stores.
The group has developed a dedicated private label range for KwaMakhi and is working with leading supplier brands to ensure reliable product availability at accessible price points.
Pricing is anchored on an everyday-low-price strategy rather than discount-driven promotions, supplemented by selected campaigns to make essential items even more affordable for township shoppers.
Although average basket sizes are expected to be smaller than at Clicks, the group anticipates significantly higher transaction volumes driven by the convenience-led, high-frequency shopping behaviour the format is designed to capture.
While the immediate focus is on building a successful domestic business, management sees long-term opportunities to adapt the model for other African markets, positioning KwaMakhi as more than a South African retail concept.
Brand positioning and customer proposition
KwaMakhi is positioned as a true neighbourhood convenience retailer, offering trusted everyday products within walking distance of customers’ homes to reduce reliance on trips to regional shopping centres.
Beyond convenience, the format is designed to keep consumer spending within local communities and generate employment, with each store employing about six people from the surrounding area to make everyday shopping easier, safer and more accessible.
The concept has also been well received by property owners, with landlords willing to collaborate on creating suitable retail spaces, which bolsters confidence in the brand’s scalability.
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