Pepkor, a major South African retailer, now sells eight out of every ten prepaid phones in the country, up from seven last year, according to its interim financial results for the six months ending March 2025, released on Tuesday. The retailer’s prepaid phone sales rose 17% in the same period, as demand for affordable mobile devices surged.
Pepkor stores are well-known for their affordability, catering to around 34.3 million low-income earners – about 63.5% of South Africa’s population. The group claims to be using its expansive network of about 5,975 stores across the country as a powerful distribution channel for prepaid cellphones, aiming for a 50.5 million share of smartphones. Pepkor plans to open between 250 and 300 new stores in 2025, further expanding its reach in prepaid cellphone distribution.
During the six months leading up to March 2025, Pepkor sold 6.8 million prepaid phones, a 17% increase from the previous period. Smartphone adoption has risen as the group continues to make devices more affordable, with sales climbing to 65% of all handsets sold, up from 60% in the previous period.
The active SIM card base increased from 29- 30 million, driven by the number of SIM cards sold by the group, and underpins ongoing revenue.
FoneYam, the group’s newly developed cellular handset rental service, launched in 2024 and designed to make smartphones affordable for customers, continued to grow strongly. Pepkor says active customers reached 1.5 million by the end of the period. Monthly activations averaged 165,000 over the period, from 120,000.
Pepkor reported a 12.4% rise in half-year earnings, while revenue grew 12.8%, supported by improved product availability and the strong growth in cellular connectivity.
Group revenue grew by 12.8% to R48.8 billion (about $2.73 billion), with the clothing and general merchandise segment increasing revenue by 9.5% to R34.5 billion ($1.93 billion), and the furniture, appliances, and electronics segment up by 9.1% to R6.5 billion ($364 million). Its fintech business increased revenue by 34.5% to R7.9-billion ($442.8 million), driven by 67.3% growth in financial services.