{"id":862657,"date":"2026-06-07T17:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-07T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=862657"},"modified":"2026-06-05T13:53:04","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T11:53:04","slug":"new-store-60-cheaper-than-pick-n-pay-and-checkers-a-massive-hit-in-south-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/business\/862657\/new-store-60-cheaper-than-pick-n-pay-and-checkers-a-massive-hit-in-south-africa\/","title":{"rendered":"New store 60% cheaper than Pick n Pay and Checkers a massive hit in South Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The new and first-of-its-kind store SKUBU has been a massive hit in rural communities, with prices up to 60% cheaper than major retail stores. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Launched in 2025 in Diepsloot, Johannesburg, the store model is built around refill stations rather than traditional packaged goods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Customers are able to bring their own containers and purchase staples such as maize meal, rice, sugar, cooking oil, and household detergents in exact quantities they can afford.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pricing is set per litre or kilogram, with the system designed to remove the cost of packaging while increasing flexibility for shoppers with limited incomes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The timing of the concept has resonated in South Africa as the country faces ongoing cost-of-living pressures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data from the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity (PMBEJD) group shows that the cost of a basic nutritional food basket for a family of seven rose slightly from R6,618.99 in April 2026 to R6,634.22 in May 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, PMBEJD also noted a persistent gap between what households are able to afford and what they should ideally spend to meet basic nutrition needs, with a difference of about R1,154.96 recorded in May 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This cost pressure is what has made SKUBU successful. SKUBU\u2019s model offers a lower-cost alternative that also attempts to address inefficiencies in the way goods are packaged and sold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of buying pre-packed products, customers effectively pay only for the product itself, not the packaging, which SKUBU said contributes to its significant price reductions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Founder Eben de Jongh said the idea emerged from his experience working in the fast-moving consumer goods sector, where he helped connect manufacturers to informal retail networks such as spaza shops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He noticed that while smaller pack sizes were marketed as affordable, they often carried a higher cost per unit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe poorest actually end up paying the most and generate the most waste,\u201d de Jongh said, describing what he calls a structural \u201cpoverty tax\u201d embedded in retail pricing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI thought, I know how to solve this problem, or I think I know how to solve the problem, and I think it\u2019s a problem that\u2019s worth solving.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plans to open more stores with a new concept<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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He added that the motivation behind SKUBU was not only commercial but also social. \u201cIt\u2019s expensive to be poor. The more I understood it, the more I fell in love with solving it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The system is powered by refill technology developed by Sonke, which operates internet-connected dispensing stations that track products from warehouse to shelf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These systems allow for precise measurement and automated pricing, forming the backbone of SKUBU\u2019s low-cost structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

De Jongh said building the platform required several years of development and significant personal sacrifice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI had to sell my house and my apartment to fund the business to this point,\u201d he said, and added that turning the concept into a functioning retail system took roughly four years of full-time work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite early challenges, the rollout has seen strong consumer response. \u201cThe reception has been incredible,\u201d de Jongh told BusinessTech. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPeople genuinely identify with what we\u2019re trying to achieve. There\u2019s something about our mission that resonates deeply with South Africans.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thousands of customers have visited SKUBU stores in Johannesburg locations such as Chuma Mall and Bambanani Mall since launch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The company is now exploring expansion, including a container-based format called SKUBU Nyana, designed to bring smaller, modular stores closer to communities without requiring full retail infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSKUBU Nyana is the \u2018baby\u2019 of the family,\u201d de Jongh explained, and described it as a compact version intended to reach deeper into underserved areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the model also reduces single-use packaging and supports circular economy goals, de Jongh stressed that affordability remains the central objective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He also stressed quality control, and said he would rather run out of stock than sell substandard goods, because many customers cannot afford to waste money on poor-quality products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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SKUBU \u2013 Photos <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The new and first-of-its-kind store SKUBU has been a massive hit in South Africa, with prices up to 60% cheaper than major retail stores.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":862692,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9872],"tags":[22997,853],"class_list":["post-862657","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-skubu","tag-south-africa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/862657","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/92"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=862657"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/862657\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":862703,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/862657\/revisions\/862703"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/862692"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=862657"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=862657"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=862657"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}