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Shoprite’s Sixty60 on-demand grocery platform has grown into a R25.5 billion ($1.6 billion) digital commerce business, underscoring the rapid shift in South Africa’s retail market from traditional supermarket shopping to app-based delivery.
According to Shoprite’s latest financial performance, Sixty60 sales increased 34.5% in the financial year ended June 2026, significantly outpacing the growth recorded across the group’s conventional supermarket operations.
Digital Sales Grow Nearly Five Times Faster
The latest figures highlight the widening gap between Sixty60 and Shoprite’s traditional supermarket business.
While physical supermarket sales continue to expand, the digital platform is growing at a substantially faster pace as consumers increasingly use mobile applications to order groceries and other household products.
Sixty60’s R25.5 billion turnover represents a significant jump from the R11.9 billion recorded during the six months ended December 2025, when the platform’s sales had already grown by 34.6%.
The sustained growth suggests that online grocery shopping is becoming a more established part of consumer behaviour rather than simply a convenience used occasionally.
From Grocery Delivery to Digital Commerce
Sixty60 began as an on-demand grocery delivery service but has progressively expanded the range of products available through its platform.
The service allows customers to order groceries and other products through a mobile app and have them delivered from nearby Checkers stores.
The platform has also expanded its network considerably. By March 2026, Sixty60 was operating from 875 stores across South Africa, giving the service a substantially wider physical footprint from which to fulfil digital orders.
That combination of physical stores and digital ordering has become one of the platform’s biggest advantages, allowing Shoprite to use its existing retail infrastructure as the foundation for its e-commerce operation.
Technology Reshapes Supermarket Competition
Sixty60’s performance demonstrates how traditional retailers are increasingly competing not only through store locations and pricing but also through technology, logistics and customer experience.
The platform effectively connects Shoprite’s supermarket network to customers’ smartphones, allowing shoppers to browse products, place orders and receive deliveries without physically visiting a store.
This model also gives Shoprite access to additional consumer data, including purchasing patterns and ordering frequency, which can help the retailer improve stock management, promotions and customer engagement.
A Major Digital Growth Engine
The strong performance of Sixty60 has increasingly made the platform an important growth engine for Shoprite.
The company’s broader digital strategy has expanded beyond simply putting groceries online. Shoprite has continued investing in digital platforms, delivery infrastructure and technology designed to make shopping more convenient.
Sixty60 has also created a significant logistics ecosystem around rapid delivery, with Shoprite’s delivery operations supporting the platform’s growing order volumes.
The result is a business that increasingly resembles a standalone digital commerce operation while remaining deeply integrated with Shoprite’s physical retail network.
South Africa’s E-commerce Market Evolves
Sixty60’s growth comes as online shopping continues to gain ground in South Africa.
Consumers are increasingly comfortable using smartphones for everyday purchases, while improvements in internet access, digital payments and delivery networks have lowered some of the barriers that previously limited online retail.
For traditional retailers, the shift creates both an opportunity and a challenge: companies with extensive store networks can turn those locations into fulfilment points, but they must also invest heavily in technology and logistics to compete effectively with digital-first businesses.
The Road Ahead
Sixty60’s latest performance shows that Shoprite’s digital strategy is no longer a side business attached to its supermarket operations.
With R25.5 billion in annual sales, the platform has become a sizeable digital commerce operation in its own right.
Its continued expansion could further blur the distinction between physical and online retail, particularly as Shoprite uses its extensive store network to support faster fulfilment.
For Nigeria and other African markets watching the evolution of digital commerce, Sixty60’s trajectory offers an important lesson: the future of retail may not be about choosing between supermarkets and e-commerce, but about connecting both into a single shopping experience.
