Walmart's African subsidiary, Massmart, is making more money from fresh food at its Game stores in the rest of Africa than it is in its local operations. Speaking to the Business Times this week, CEO Guy Hayward said that while Massmart didn't have a fully fledged and integrated food retail business like Shoprite or Pick n Pay in the rest of the continent, "we've got food in four or five Game stores in Africa, which do exceptionally well. It's as much as 40% of our stores, whereas in this country that would be closer to 15% or 20%." Hayward said while Massmart, "doesn't have a supply chain or capabilities to take the retail chain in scale into Africa", its Jumbo brand, a component of its Masscash format, "is ideal for Africa and has got a mom-and-pop independent traders market, and if we can help them trade better and save money we'll do well". Massmart has always positioned itself as a white goods retailer, but in the face of an economic downturn and as consumers move away from dis...
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