Checkers beats Spar, Pick n Pay, and Woolworths

Press Pulse’s online media sentiment report revealed that Checkers far outperformed Pick n Pay and Spar, while Woolworths was last with a negative sentiment score.

Press Pulse developed an artificial intelligence (AI) sentiment-measuring system for online media reports and mentions.

The system focuses on South African business reporting from top-tier media publications and measures companies’ success in achieving positive exposure.

The sentiment ranking is based on the number of positive, neutral, or negative articles, as well as the reach and influence of the publication where they are published.

Simply put, the more positive articles a company receives, the better its sentiment ranking. The inverse also holds.

Online media in South Africa is highly influential, which is why companies invest heavily in public relations and content marketing to get positive exposure.

However, before Press Pulse’s new sentiment system, it was difficult for companies to track their performance accurately.

The good news is that new advances in artificial intelligence have made it possible to measure media sentiment objectively.

The system uses sophisticated natural language processing and deep learning for accurate sentiment detection.

Press Pulse makes it easy for companies to track their online media sentiment and gain insight into how they can improve.

The Press Pulse reports provide companies with clear insights into where they excel, where they fall short, and the prevailing sentiment trends in the market.

It also helps companies to benchmark their performance against their peers and track their sentiment over time.

Sentiment analysis for South African high-end food retail companies

Press Pulse’s sentiment analysis of South African retail brands over the last 90 days revealed that Checkers, with a positive sentiment score of 46, has a big lead over its main rivals.

Checkers, owned by sister retailer and discount chain Shoprite, is a well-run company and regularly receives praise from analysts and other stakeholders.

The Checkers Sixty60 on-demand grocery delivery platform is also dominant in South Africa and is capturing market share from its competitors.

Spar ranked second with a sentiment score of 17, followed by Pick n Pay with a score of 12. Pick n Pay was bolstered by Boxer’s excellent performance.

Woolworths lost significant ground in recent weeks and finished last with a negative sentiment score of -7, making it the only large retailer with a negative score.

Woolworths started the year well, but its financial results showed a significant drop in profitability for the first half of its 2025 financial year.

This resulted in numerous negative articles about the company, which pushed its sentiment score into negative territory.

The table and chart below provide an overview of the online media sentiment for South Africa’s top food retailers in the high-end market.