The short version:  FMCG retail rewards programmes show-off at awards night
2026 marks the eighth year of the South African Loyalty Awards, designed to recognise and celebrate excellence and innovation across South Africa’s loyalty landscape. Loyalty programmes entered into the competition are judged against international standards and measurable results by a panel of respected local and international loyalty and CRM professionals. As expected, our FMCG retailers walked away with a host of awards:

• Best Programme: Retail – Shoprite/Checkers Xtra Savings (Winner), alongside Clicks ClubCard (Highly Commended) and Pick n Pay Smart Shopper (Commended)
• Best Programme: Subscription – Shoprite/Checkers Xtra Savings (Winner)
• Best Use of AI To Improve Loyalty Experience – Shoprite/Checkers Xtra Savings (Winner), Clicks ClubCard (Highly Commended)
• Loyalty Team Of The Year – Shoprite/Checkers Xtra Savings (Winner)
• Best Relaunched Programme – Dis-Chem Better Rewards (Winner)
• Best Programme: Restaurants / QSR – Spur (Winner)
• Best Long-Term Loyalty Programme: Open – Shoprite/Checkers Xtra Savings (Highly Commended), Clicks ClubCard (Commended)
• Best Short-Term Loyalty Marketing Campaign – Clicks ClubCard (Highly Commended), Pick n Pay Smart Shopper (Commended)
• Best Strategic Use Of Data Analytics / CRM Application – Clicks ClubCard (Highly Commended), Shoprite/Checkers Xtra Savings (Commended)
• Best Use Of Gamification – Pick n Pay (Highly Commended)

The short version:  Shoprite report shows that small businesses are surviving, but struggling to scale
Shoprite has just released its second ‘State of the SMME in South Africa’ report, which reveals that almost one-third of the 800 surveyed small businesses have been operating for more than two decades, which is rather impressive. However, the research conducted by World Wide Worx also shows that SMMEs remain small in size, with 40% of the businesses surveyed employing just one to five people, highlighting the fact that even businesses that have survived for years don’t consistently develop into larger employers. What do the businesses say would help them grow? Access to markets, financial support, and digital tools and platforms. Regular orders rank as the most valued form of support from large organisations (with almost 4 out of 5 businesses saying they are important or very important), ahead of mentorship, grants, training, technical skills and loans. Some 70.8% of respondents say improved access to funding would increase their competitiveness, yet 90.9% currently rely on their own resources and personal networks. Only 9.7% use bank loans, while a remarkable 57.4% have never applied for funding. “These findings are encouraging, particularly given the difficult operating environment SMMEs have navigated,” says Maude Modise, Enterprise and Government Relations Executive at the Shoprite Group. “The challenge now is to help businesses convert that resilience into sustainable growth and greater economic impact.” 

The short version:  Tesco CI ‘stolen’ by illegal casino | Lidl packs more protein in meat | Kroger to squeeze suppliers on price
Shoplifting is a frustrating challenge faced by retailers the world over, but this week, Tesco has seen its very identity lifted by an illegal online casino, no less. Tescoslots.com is posing as the UK supermarket chain, stealing its look and feel, CI, and it even refers to Tesco’s history, Clubcard programme, and financial services, doing a great job of convincing visitors that the retailer is in fact affiliated with the casino games splashed all over the website. The website remains active (at the time of writing) despite Tesco reporting the operation to UK cybersecurity authorities, although Meta has removed related social media ads.

Moving along, ‘protein’ is the new ‘fibre’ when it comes to things you absolutely must increase your intake of these days, so Lidl in the UK has found a way to add even more of the stuff to a food type that you would think is already maxed out on it, i.e. meat. How does one go about adding more ‘meat’ to meat? Using peas, of course! By adding pea protein to its private label beef mince, meatballs, burgers, and pork sausages, Lidl has managed to increase their protein content by 20%, all while remaining very affordably priced. Blended meat is what they’re calling it… Perhaps a new category name is in order.

Over in the US, (relatively) new Kroger CEO Greg Foran is playing hardball with manufacturers, saying that he is prepared to lose his long-time suppliers over price. In May this year, the retailer said it would be looking at ways to cut prices on thousands of products to help its (increasingly migrating) customers make ends meet. Kroger has also said that it will cut costs by reducing internal expenses and using tech more efficiently. In the state of Ohio, however, inspectors have found that Kroger has been overcharging shoppers through pricing errors. Maybe that’s where ‘using tech more efficiently’ could come in, as a start.