Pepkor Retires Shoe City After 39 Years
Pepkor Retires Shoe City After 39 Years. Pepkor has announced that it will be closing its long standing Shoe City retail chain after nearly four decades in South Africa. The decision ends the journey of a brand that began in 1986, when its first 500 square metre store opened in Bellville and quickly attracted customers looking for affordable and accessible footwear.
The chain grew steadily throughout the 1990s, expanding to 65 stores by 2000. After Pepkor acquired Shoe City in 2005, the brand continued to grow and reached 95 stores by 2007. Over time, the retailer shifted from warehouse style locations to modern mall based stores, maintaining its position as a dependable source of everyday footwear at competitive prices.
Despite its long history and established market presence, Shoe City has faced persistent challenges. Pepkor reported that the brand has consistently weighed down the performance of its speciality division, which also includes Tekkie Town and Refinery. While this division recorded overall sales growth of 8.3%, like for like growth reached only 3%, with Shoe City being the weakest performer.
Following a detailed internal review, Pepkor concluded that Shoe City had become “sub scale”, lacked meaningful long term growth potential, and required investment levels that were no longer justified. The company stated that the brand had been evaluated numerous times, with various improvement attempts made over the years.
Pepkor COO Sean Cardinaal explained to investors that the group regularly measures the performance of all its business units to ensure capital and management attention are directed toward areas with the strongest return potential. According to Cardinaal, the company no longer sees viable upside for Shoe City despite repeated efforts to revitalise the format.
“To keep the team focused, we have decided to close this business,” he said. However, he emphasised that all Shoe City employees will be absorbed into other Pepkor brands, ensuring that no jobs are lost during the transition.
The closure will be phased in during the first half of Pepkor’s 2026 financial year. Of the 113 Shoe City stores currently operating, approximately 50 will be converted into other Pepkor retail formats, while the remaining stores will close as their leases come to an end.
Although Shoe City is being retired, Pepkor continues to expand in other areas of its portfolio. The group now operates more than 6 000 stores across its brands and has grown its digital customer base by over 10 million users. This physical and digital reach is becoming a central pillar of Pepkor’s broader growth strategy.
A key development in 2025 was the acquisition of Choice Clothing, which operates 105 stores. The brand strengthens Pepkor’s presence in the off price and semi formal clothing category, with the company indicating that Choice could potentially grow to more than 300 locations. Choice will retain its independent identity but will benefit from Pepkor’s supply chain and financial support systems.
Pepkor also introduced Ayana, a new women’s fashion brand aimed at mid market customers. Ayana operates from 32 former Ackermans Women’s stores and has launched an online store to expand its reach.
The group’s recent strategic shifts have contributed to strong financial performance. Pepkor reported revenue of R95.3 billion, with its Clothing and General Merchandise segment increasing 8.9% to R66.9 billion. Annual profit rose from R2.1 billion to R5.6 billion, supported by improved gross profit and fewer once off capital charges. Basic earnings per share increased by 171.3%, while headline earnings per share rose 14.8% to 161 cents. On a normalised basis, excluding a prior year tax benefit, headline earnings grew 23.4%. Pepkor also raised its interim dividend by 9.2% to 53 cents per share, reflecting confidence in its ongoing retail strategy.
