South Africa

During the review period, there was a clear trend towards smartphones with larger screen sizes in South Africa. This was driven mainly by technological advancements which allowed consumers to perform multiple functions, which until relatively…

Consumers’ lifestyles in South Africa have changed significantly since the pandemic, particularly as many employees continue to work from home for at least part of the week. Subsequently, the need for a convenient environment has also increased…

Since the pandemic, the focus on wearing formal attire has shifted to more casual trends in South Africa. This trend remains prevalent in 2023, with fewer formal attire ranges being displayed in various men’s apparel specialists. As a result, many…

Demand for menstrual care in South Africa continued to increase in 2023, despite the country experiencing high inflation, driving up prices of food, transport and electricity. This also influenced the value performance of menstrual care, with rising…

Demand for men’s grooming in South Africa continued to rise in 2023. Since the pandemic, an increasing number of South African males have started to prioritise their skin care routines, including a greater shift towards using face masks. Men are not…

This Megatrends report highlights long-term trends resulting from shifts in consumer values and behaviour. It provides a summary of each of Euromonitor International’s 10 focus megatrends and insights as to how each trend has manifested in South…

The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) reported a significant slowdown in disposable income growth in the first quarter of 2023. The impact of high inflation and rising interest rates resulted in a household debt-to-income ratio increasing from 61.6%…

In South Africa, dry soup is well-liked as it is a strong option in areas with inconsistent access to energy or refrigeration, since it can be stored for long periods of time without refrigeration. Flexible plastic and folding cartons are frequently…

As in the previous year, in 2023 ready meals and soups is set to see solid retail volume growth, along with dynamic double-digit current value growth as a result of inflationary price rises. The growing demand for healthy and convenient ready meals…

Sales of mass beauty and personal care in South Africa continued to rise in 2023, with many consumers struggling with the cost of living. Cash-strapped consumers became stricter with their budgets, and reduced their shopping list for their beauty and…

Retail sales of luxury goods in South Africa are expected to grow by 14% in current value terms in 2023 to reach ZAR55.0 billion. The category has continued on the path to recovery with consumers returning to their pre-pandemic work, travel, and…

As international tourist arrivals to South Africa experience a resurgence, there has been a significant increase in airlift capacity, reaching levels comparable to pre-pandemic years. Cape Town International Airport, in particular, has reported a…

South Africa is struggling with the impact of high inflation and decreased disposable incomes, resulting in brands needing to be competitive to obtain their share of financially-restricted consumers’ budgets. Post-pandemic, eating out is considered a…

Laundry care in South Africa recorded a flat performance in 2023, although the largest category of laundry detergents continued to experience rising demand, a trend supported by a marginal decline in the average unit price. Laundry care in the…

The shortage of electricity across the country has resulted in increasing demand for alternative power sources such as solar and gas. Since the introduction of load shedding in South Africa, which restricts access to electricity for a certain amount…

Popular juice brand Liqui-Fruit (Pioneer Foods (Pty) Ltd for PepsiCo Inc) has been rebranded. Its packaging has switched from a colourful box to a white background where the logo’s colour is associated with the juice’s flavour. When compared to the…

The Johannesburg in South Africa report provides comprehensive city level information benchmarked against other cities in the country and region. The report includes historic data and forecasts on city population, consumer expenditure, digital…

Lab grown diamonds are gaining popularity in South Africa, and the reason for this is twofold. The first reason is that lab-grown diamonds are cheaper. Consumers have seen falling disposable incomes in 2023, and therefore lab-grown diamonds have…

Many South Africans face tough economic conditions due to the rising cost of living. This is forcing them to reduce their discretionary spending. Due to economic difficulties in the country, increasing numbers of consumers are trading down from…

The emergence of products with multiple functions across the consumer electronics industry continued to have a negative impact on in-car entertainment in South Africa in 2023. In-car navigation, for example, is increasingly affected by the fact that…

Imaging devices are increasingly under threat from alternative, better value for money products that serve the same purpose, most notably smartphones. Most new smartphones have an imaging functionality that competes with both digital cameras and…

Rolling blackouts (loadshedding) have persisted in 2023, averaging stage 4 for the year (at the time of writing this report), which means that consumers experience power cuts for three to four two-hour slots per day. As a result, consumers have cut…

The number of hypermarkets operating in South Africa continued to decline in 2023. The trend emerged just prior to the pandemic due to cautious investments in the wake of economic uncertainty in the country. This scenario was exacerbated by lockdown…

2022 saw many South Africans reduce their spending on perceived non-essentials as the cost of living increased. In many aspects, health and wellness demands from consumers took a backseat in their priorities, given inflationary pressures. Major…

With the continued development of the health and wellness industry in South Africa, children are being increasingly targeted as a significant consumer group for healthier soft drinks. Much of this is being driven by local parents, who are becoming…

Private label snacks have grown in popularity as South Africans seek affordable alternatives to well-known, established brands. Retailers are capitalising on this trend by investing in research and development to create innovative snacks that cater…

Hot drink innovations in 2022 were primarily focused on new offerings addressing consumer demand for non-animal products, including healthy plant-based alternatives, across chocolate-based, malt-based and other plant-based drinks. However, these…

2022 was a challenging year for many South Africans challenged by continuous blackouts, rising food inflation and unemployment. While consumers reduced non-essential spending to help balance household budgets, healthy eating remained top of mind.…

Globally, young adults are the key consumers of plant-based foods, and South Africa is no different. South Africa ranks in the top five countries that ordered the most vegan dishes according to UberEats, with vegan burgers reported as the most…

In the coming years, South Africa is predicted to see a rise in the number of households, particularly single person households, which continue to be the largest and fastest growing household type. In 2022, household spending was impacted by a 7%…

Flexible aluminium/plastic, which is the dominant pack type used in hot drinks packaging in South Africa, continued to record strong unit volume growth in this industry in 2023. Flexible aluminium/plastic packaging is seen as providing superior…

In 2023, rising inflation, which reached its highest level in 14 years, and increased input costs for brands are curbing the spending habits of many South Africans. Additionally, input costs for major industry players are rising as they adapt to…

Hosiery remains a small and declining category in South Africa (in retail volume sales terms). Generally, hosiery will account for low share of shelf in most apparel and retail stores. Similarly, expansion potential is relatively limited as there is…

In 2023, sustainability remained a key focus for consumers in South Africa, leading to growing demand for homewares such as kitchen utensils and other items made from eco-friendly materials. Products such as bamboo utensils and reusable silicone food…

Consumer demands continued to evolve in 2023, alongside the emergence of new technologies. One notable trend within home video was a growing demand for multifunctional smart TVs, which gave consumers the opportunity to stream their favourite shows…

Home products specialists in South Africa continued to record a fairly weak performance in 2023. From one of the lowest interest rates imposed by the South African Reserve Bank during the pandemic, mortgage rates continued to skyrocket in 2023 as the…

Remote/hybrid working measures in South Africa since the pandemic have changed consumers’ lifestyles, including placing greater pressure on their time. Busy consumers must juggle work with childcare commitments, including taking or collecting them…

Demand for home insecticides in South Africa continued to rise in 2023, with the country experiencing a surge in the presence and number of German cockroaches. Climate change oriented around wet and humid summers earlier in the year perpetuated the…

In 2023, value sales growth of home improvement in South Africa remained fairly flat, but some local consumers continued to be invest in their kitchens and bathrooms. Bathroom and kitchen renovations are some of the most popular as these are most…

Value sales of home furnishings in South Africa continued to rise in 2023. However, retailers have shifted to procuring more locally manufactured furniture following the high costs of shipping and supply chain delays. Local and global logistics…

In 2022, the lingering impact of heightened hygiene consciousness due to the pandemic continued to influence the performance of home care categories in South Africa. For example, bleach continued to see positive growth in 2022, even following the…

Overall demand for home care in South Africa remained stable in 2023, despite some variations in performance across the categories. While there may be a difference between high-income and low-income individuals in South Africa, the impact of elevated…

Towards the end of the review period, there was a growing demand for home audio and cinema products which did not require a lot of time to set up and operate, commensurate with increasingly busy lifestyles. One product to benefit from this trend was…

Overall value sales of home and garden in South Africa continued to rise in 2023, despite prevailing economic challenges in the country significantly eroding consumers' disposable incomes. These challenges stemmed primarily from the persistent rise…

Since the pandemic, consumers have slowly begun to prioritise their health and wellness. This in turn has led to growing sales of herbal/traditional products. For example, Clicks stocks a brand called Sela. Sela is a tea bag brand that is available…

The health and wellness industry continues to grow in importance post-pandemic as consumers become more aware of the negative health impact of processed foods, seeking healthier foods and beverages from a range of claims such as natural, organic,…

After being affected by restrictive lockdown restrictions, which resulted in the imposition of face masks and limited social gatherings, beauty specialists in South Africa are now benefiting from consumers’ revived routines, including returning to…

Many companies in South Africa are adopting a hybrid working model, a trend that was facilitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Such a development has boosted volume sales of headphone products, which saw continued growth in 2023. The main reason behind…

There was a strong emphasis on natural ingredients within hair care in South Africa towards the end of the review period. An increasing number of consumers have moved away from potentially harmful chemicals in their hair care products and are…

Although retail volume sales of gum are expected to return to a slight decline in 2023, the category is set to record strong single-digit retail current value growth in 2023, primarily driven by price rises, value-added options, and flavour…