After nearly four decades of serving South African shoppers, Shoe City prepares to close its doors—signalling the end of a beloved retail chapter. Picture Credits: Mall of the North
By Aisha Zardad
South Africa – Pepkor has announced that it will be closing its long-standing Shoe City retail chain, bringing an end to a brand that has been part of South Africa’s retail landscape for almost 40 years.
Shoe City began in 1986, when its first store opened inside a modest 500sqm warehouse in Bellville. It quickly became a hit among South African shoppers, known for its affordable and accessible footwear. The chain grew steadily over the years, expanding to 65 stores by 2000 and reaching 95 stores by 2007—just two years after joining the Pepkor Group.
As it evolved, the retailer shifted from warehouse-style spaces to modern mall environments, building a reputation as a go-to destination for everyday fashion at competitive prices.
Why Pepkor Is Shutting Shoe City Down: Despite its strong legacy, Shoe City has faced mounting challenges. Pepkor confirmed that the chain has consistently weighed down the performance of its speciality division, which includes Tekkie Town and Refinery. Although the division delivered overall sales growth of 8.3%, like-for-like growth was limited to 3%, largely due to Shoe City’s continued underperformance.
After an extensive review, Pepkor concluded that the format is now “sub-scale,” lacks meaningful long-term growth potential, and no longer justifies the investment required to sustain it.
Pepkor COO Sean Cardinaal said the company regularly evaluates its assets to ensure resources are focused on areas that yield the strongest returns.
“Pepkor has attempted for years to adjust the Shoe City business,” he said, “but we reached a point where we no longer saw a meaningful upside. To keep the team focused, we made the difficult decision to close this business.”
He emphasised that no jobs will be lost. All Shoe City employees will be redeployed to other Pepkor brands.
What Happens Next: The closure will roll out during the first half of Pepkor’s 2026 financial year. Of the 113 Shoe City stores currently trading:
- Around 50 locations will be converted into other Pepkor formats
- The remainder will close as their leases come to an end
Pepkor’s Bigger Picture: Expansion, Not Retrenchment: While Shoe City is closing, Pepkor is far from downsizing. The group is investing heavily in growth, with strong performance across its core retail categories and increasing customer demand.
The company now operates more than 6,000 stores across its brands and has added over 10 million customers to its digital ecosystem. Pepkor says the combination of physical reach and digital engagement is becoming a major driver of its future strategy.
Several strategic moves are shaping this next phase:
1. Acquisition of Choice Clothing: Completed on 1 June 2025, this adds 105 stores to Pepkor’s portfolio and gives it a solid entry into the semi-formal, off-price segment. Pepkor plans to grow the brand to more than 300 stores, while maintaining its independent identity with support from Pepkor’s supply chain, sourcing and financial services.
2. Launch of Ayana: A new fashion brand targeting mid-market women, Ayana is using 32 former Ackermans Women’s stores and has already launched an online store.
Financial Performance Remains Strong. Despite industry pressures, Pepkor delivered robust results:
- Revenue grew 12% to R95.3 billion
- Clothing & General Merchandise increased 8.9% to R66.9 billion
- Annual profit rose from R2.1 billion to R5.6 billion
- Basic earnings per share jumped 171.3%
- Headline earnings per share grew 14.8% to 161 cents
- The interim dividend increased 9.2% to 53 cents per share
When excluding a once-off tax benefit from the previous year, normalized headline earnings still rose a healthy 23.4%.
