More bad news for Pick n Pay in South Africa
Pick n Pay is facing strong opposition from its primary labour union, the South African Commercial, Catering, and Allied Workers Union (SACCAWU), as it continues its turnaround plans.
The group said that a dispute has been filed with the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation, and Arbitration (CCMA) regarding its Section 189A processes, which could impact 22,000 employees.
It added that, as part of SACCAWU’s opposition to the S189A (retrenchment) process, the union has filed an application with the Labour Court and referred the dispute to the CCMA.
“The consultation process remains ongoing under the auspices of the CCMA,” it said.
The CCMA process was halted in June following intervention by the Department of Employment and Labour, but Pick n Pay noted that the matters remain pending.
“The consultation process has not yet concluded, and no final outcomes have been determined,” it said.
The retail giant has been fighting to turn its operations around after it was found to be technically insolvent at the beginning of 2024.
In the 2024 financial year, Pick n Pay had seen a 373% drop in profits, leading to a net loss of R3.2 billion, along with the company breaching its debt covenants.
This meant that the company’s total liabilities exceeded its total assets by R183 million, making it technically insolvent.
The poor financials explained why, at the end of 2023, Pick n Pay had introduced Sean Summers as its new CEO.
In the following years, Summers has made several attempts to right Pick n Pay’s financials, including a R4 billion rights offer and an unbundling of Boxer shares.
The company’s controlling stake in Boxer has been a saving grace for the group, as Boxer has performed strongly in recent years compared to its parent company.
Currently, Pick n Pay owns approximately 53.1% of Boxer, after selling a large portion of its shares in May 2026 to fund its ongoing turnaround project.
During this turnaround project, staff costs and operating structures were identified as major liabilities for the company. It also closed several loss-making stores and converted others to the Boxer brand.
To bring its spending under control, Pick n Pay began a consultation process with its primary labour union, SACCAWU, on 4 May 2026.
Since the start of this process, SACCAWU has opposed Pick n Pay’s staff restructuring plans and has referred its dispute to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation, and Arbitration (CCMA).
Pick n Pay has said that it is exploring all options as alternatives to retrenchments, as the company fights to make its labour policies sustainable.
“Pick n Pay remains fully committed to engaging in good faith and in accordance with all applicable legal requirements,” it said in a recent trading statement.
Slow growth for the retailer
In a trading statement on 6 August 2026, Pick n Pay outlined its turnover and like-for-like sales for the 20 weeks ended 19 July 2026.
The company saw its like-for-like sales grow by approximately 2.6% year-on-year, with growth of 1.9% in its South African operations.
However, its turnover in South Africa decreased by 0.4%, which it attributed to the recent planned closure or conversion of underperforming stores.
Pick n Pay’s company-owned stores in South Africa saw their like-for-like sales grow by 3.3%, the largest growth among its sectors.
The company said that like-for-like growth is currently its main target indicator for its South African operations.
Across all its segments, Pick n Pay Clothing recorded the worst like-for-like sales growth, dropping to -1.3% and being the only segment to see a decline in the 20-week period.
Despite this, the company said it is happy with the performance of its clothing section, which it described as “regaining its momentum”.
The company said market conditions in South Africa had remained highly constrained, due to soft economic growth and elevated fuel prices.
It noted that it is pleased with the continued strong performance of Boxer, which it said “continues to gain market share”.
“PnP SA Supermarkets is showing an improved like-for-like performance relative to H2 FY26. Despite this improvement, much remains to be done,” the company said.
It said that several achievements and turnaround initiatives need to be completed for the company to meet its break-even target.
Like-for-like sales growth in Pick n Pay segments
| Like-for-like sales growth | H1 FY26 | H2 FY26 | 20 weeks ended 19 July 2026 |
| PnP South Africa | 4.4% | 1.3% | 1.9% |
| PnP SA Supermarkets | 3.7% | 1.9% | 2.6% |
| PnP SA company-owned supermarkets | 4.8% | 3.0% | 3.3% |
| PnP SA franchise supermarkets | 1.8% | -0.2% | 1.3% |
| PnP Clothing standalone stores | 7.5% | -5.6% | -1.3% |
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