South Africa’s biggest online store has crossed a line it spent years chasing. Naspers reports that Takealot moved from an adjusted operating loss to a profit in the year to March 2026.
Revenue rose 18% to $1 billion. The total value of goods sold on the platform reached $2 billion.
The more interesting move is defensive. Takealot has opened its marketplace to Chinese sellers, a direct response to Temu and Shein, which have been winning South African shoppers on price. The logic is simple. If customers want cheap goods from China, better they buy them on Takealot than leave for a rival app.
Local sellers won’t love it. A South African merchant selling phone cases or kitchenware now competes on the same page as factories in Shenzhen. Price wars on commodity products are coming.
The lesson for brands is the one retail always teaches: if you only compete on price, someone cheaper will eventually show up. Local businesses that win from here will win on speed of delivery, after sales service, and products that are made for South African customers instead of everyone.
Sources: TechCabal Daily, WeeTracker
