Online Sales A Bright Spot In Bleak Pick N Pay Results

"Trading losses in the group's Pick n Pay business grew 9.1, in line with budgets, to R718.9-million, largely due to gross profit margin contraction," Pick n Pay said of the numbers for the first half of the 2025 financial year.

"However, the business saw solid momentum in its clothing and online businesses, with encouraging improvement in the underlying performance of its company-owned supermarkets," it said.

For the reporting period - the 26 weeks to 25 August 2024 - group turnover rose by 3.7 to R56.1-billion. Trading profit rose by 159 to R81.5-million and headline earnings per share declined by 16.3 to a loss of 136.6c.

The wider half-year loss reflected the trading losses in its core supermarkets business alongside higher borrowing costs.

The country's third-biggest grocery retailer reported a loss before tax and capital items of R1.1-billion, compared to a loss of R837.2-million a year ago.