This article examines the reasons behind the failure of Everyshop, an online retail platform launched by JD Group in 2021, to gain traction in the South African e-commerce market. It analyzes Everyshop's performance compared to other major online players and highlights strategic missteps, including a reliance on print advertising and a fragmented online presence.
Nearly four years after launching with millions of rand in investment, online store Everyshop has completely disappeared from the South Africa n e-commerce landscape. Rolled out in April 2021, Everyshop was intended to be retail company JD Group’s major push into becoming a more prominent e-commerce player. JD Group, part of Pepkor , owns Incredible, HiFi Corp, Bradlows, Rochester, Russels, and Sleepmasters. The company was rebranded to Pepkor Lifestyle in the past year.
It started with two dedicated fulfilment centres and 15 large-scale distribution centres to ensure fast delivery wherever customers were located. It seemed well-positioned to compete strongly with incumbents like Takealot thanks to its existing physical presence in shopping centres that could augment its distribution capabilities. According to Internet traffic analysis tool Similarweb, Everyshop is not only far less popular than major local online stores but is struggling to keep pace with hyper-specialized PC builders. In December 2024, Everyshop ranked 287th in the Computers, Electronics, and Technology category in South Africa. Overall, it was the 7,243rd most popular website in South Africa, compared with its 6,652nd ranking in December 2023. Everyshop only recorded an average of 31,770 monthly visits in the last quarter of 2024, compared with 126,802 in the same period a year earlier and 1.2 million two years ago. Takealot.com ranked as the ninth most popular website in South Africa and the 1,977th most visited website globally. Perhaps more telling about Everyshop’s growing irrelevance to the typical South African online shopper is that specialized retailers like Evetech, GeeWiz, Wootware, and Rebel Tech are more frequently visited. JD Group previously told MyBroadband that Everyshop initially showed impressive growth but that the individual online stores of its franchises performed better. As of December 2024, the least visited Pepkor Lifestyle website aside from Everyshop was Rochester.co.za, with more than six times the number of monthly visitors as Everyshop. When combined, the six Pepkor Lifestyle brands with physical retailers had roughly 4.9 million visitors, with Incredible and HiFi Corp leading the pack with 2.4 million and 1.4 visitors, respectively. JD Group also said that although its structure and existing investments in e-commerce allowed it to launch Everyshop at a small incremental cost, marketing costs were significant. However, the required expenditure was perhaps not the main issue. It was Everyshop’s chosen advertising medium that was questionable. JD Group spent a substantial part of Everyshop’s marketing budget on print media, which it argued could help it reach a new customer base that had not shopped online before. However, circulation numbers of newspapers and magazines have plummeted in South Africa in recent years, while millions more people have gained access to the Internet. Dethroning Takealot would have already been a tall order considering the Naspers-owned company’s solid reputation, extensive product and seller selection, and well-established logistics network at the time of Everyshop’s launch. However, the right strategy would not make these challenges insurmountable, as evidenced by the success of The Foschini Group’s (TFG) online store Bash. Despite launching a year after Everyshop, Bash has grown to the 24th most visited website in South Africa, with nearly 10 million monthly visits, according to Similarweb’s latest reports. The platform has even surpassed long-time fashion favourite Superbalist, a former division of Takealot Group, which was co-founded and sold by the same two people behind Bash — Claude Hanan and Luke Jedeiken. According to TFG’s latest results, Bash was the key driver in a 41.4% surge in online sales during the third quarter of 2025
E-Commerce Online Retail Everyshop JD Group Pepkor Takealot South Africa Marketing Strategy Digital Advertising
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
South African Celebrities Ring in the New Year with African AdventuresCelebrities like Pearl Thusi, Anele Mdoda, Neo Nontso, and Rachel Kolisi enjoyed diverse experiences across Africa during the New Year, from skydiving and scenic cruises to solo explorations.
Read more »
Parliament Committee to Continue Investigating SARU and SAFA FinancesSouth Africa's Parliament sport, arts and culture committee vows to continue investigating the financial practices and management of the South African Rugby Union (SARU) and the South African Football Association (SAFA).
Read more »
Android Dominates South African Mobile Operating System MarketStatCounter GlobalStats reveals Android holds over 82% of the South African mobile OS market share, with Apple's iOS as the second most popular choice. The report analyzes usage data across millions of websites.
Read more »
250 Boys Dead at South African Initiation Schools in 4 YearsSouth African Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa condemns the deaths of at least 250 boys at initiation schools between 2019 and 2023. Over 20 arrests have been made following the tragic deaths of over 20 boys during the summer initiation season in the Eastern Cape.
Read more »
Mamelodi Sundowns Dominate Top 3 Best South African Players in 2024PSL giants Mamelodi Sundowns have dominated the list of top three best South African players who stood out throughout the course of the year 2024.
Read more »
South African Dancer and Choreographer, Masilo, Recognized for Her Unique StyleThis news article celebrates the life and achievements of the late South African dancer and choreographer, Masilo, known for her innovative approach to ballet classics and her impactful contributions to contemporary dance.
Read more »