The drivers taking over South Africa’s roads
Since entering the South African market at the start of the decade, grocery delivery services have continued to be a growth engine for several of the country’s retailers.
On-demand grocery delivery first became popular amid the COVID-19 pandemic, where strict lockdowns and movement controls limited people’s ability to shop.
Grocery delivery services quickly became a way to address this problem, as people could shop without leaving the house.
Since the end of these lockdowns, delivery services have continued to grow for many of South Africa’s established retailers.
One of the biggest players in the on-demand grocery delivery sector is Shoprite, through its Checkers and Shoprite Sixty60 service.
In the 2026 financial year, digital commerce was a driving force behind the company’s growth, with the sector reporting a 34.5% increase in sales, totalling R25.5 billion.
Digital commerce reported larger sales growth than both Checkers (10%) and Shoprite and Usave (4.3%).
The platform operates from 976 of the group’s stores, approximately 89% of the group’s combined total of 1,096 Checkers and Shoprite stores.
Online delivery services for the Shoprite group are handled by Pingo, a subsidiary of the company, which employs approximately 18,000 people.
Of its over 18,000 employees, approximately 10,000 are delivery drivers, who work as independent contractors for the company.
Shoprite is not the only company which has seen its online delivery services grow, with Pick n Pay also reporting growth in this sector.
For the 52 weeks ended 1 March 2026, Pick n Pay reported that turnover from its online business had increased by roughly 32.7%.
The company’s grocery delivery services, Pick n Pay ASAP! and grocery deliveries through Mr D, were a large part of this, with turnover growth of 37.6%.
These online services are available from over 620 of the company’s stores, including supermarkets, hypermarkets, and franchised stores.
The group said in its financial results that it employs over 2,500 delivery drivers, “improving delivery speed and reliability.”
An industry that keeps growing
For Woolworths, online delivery via its Woolies Dash platform accounted for 7.3% of its total food sales in South Africa in 2026.
The food sector was the best-performing segment for Woolworths in the last financial year, and the company plans to centre its future operations on this segment.
Spar has also increasingly worked to increase its presence in the e-commerce sector, and has seen some success.
It currently offers its Spar2U grocery delivery service in 636 stores as of the end of 2025 and said it was planning to increase its footprint in this market.
In its 2025 financial results, the company noted that consumer behaviour was rapidly shifting towards the online environment and that it needed to advance its online systems quickly.
“Competitors with advanced delivery platforms are capturing the urban convenience shopper, eroding SPAR’s relevance among tech-savvy consumers,” it said.
The sales growth for several major retailers in their online delivery divisions was not isolated in 2026 – it occurred over several years.
Since 2020, retailers have consistently reported growing revenue from on-demand services, with Shoprite holding the largest market share.
With over 10,000 delivery drivers working under the Sixty60 banner, the service has become a major employer.
While Sixty60 and other grocery delivery services provide thousands of jobs in South Africa, these positions are often not full-time or permanent.
Drivers operate as independent contractors, which gives them greater flexibility in their working hours but leaves them without many benefits.
Without being classified as permanent employees, the delivery drivers are not entitled to benefits such as paid sick leave.
Drivers are also often responsible for the maintenance and operating costs of the vehicles they use to make deliveries.
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