108-year-old retailer in South Africa facing down a major test
Truworths has seen its sales decline in South Africa in the first 17 weeks of its 2027 financial year, with November and December being key months for the retailer’s performance.
In a business update published on the Stock Exchange News Service (SENS), the group said its sales in Africa had declined 2.7% from the prior period to R4.1 billion.
In its 2026 financial year, Truworths reported a 2.1% decline in retail sales in Africa and noted that consumer spending in South Africa had been subdued.
“Trading in the first half of the period remained subdued, with South African consumer spending constrained by uncertainty from global trade tensions,” the group noted at the time.
While the previous year had seen a decrease in sales, the group said in its 2026 annual results that it was confident retail spending would recover in the medium term.
“The Group remains confident of a gradual recovery in retail spending over the medium term as inflation moderates, the impact of higher fuel costs eases, interest rates stabilise and consumer sentiment improves,” Truworths said.
“In the near term, however, consumer discretionary spending is expected to remain constrained by muted economic growth, elevated household debt, subdued consumer confidence, moderate wage growth and persistently high unemployment.”
In its latest update, the company’s sales continued to decline, with cash sales seeing the largest decrease from the prior period.
“Account sales decreased by 0.2% and represented 73% of the segment’s retail sales (prior period: 71%). Cash sales decreased by 8.6%,” the group said.
The company said its interim performance was heavily dependent on November and December, which it considered “key trading months.”
“The key November and December trading months lie ahead,” Truworths said.
“The Group’s sales performance and results for the 26 weeks ending 27 December 2026 will depend significantly on trading levels over this period.”
Several retailers have noted subdued consumer spending in the last year, due to higher inflation and interest rates spurred by conflict in the Middle East.
The war in Iran and the subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz have driven a surge in global oil prices, raising fuel costs for consumers.
These higher prices have heavily impacted South Africa’s inflation, which has consistently been above the country’s 3% target in the last year.
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