PICK 'N A WINNER

SHOPTALK

For more than 35 years, Pick n' Pay has delivered a fantastic return to its shareholders, who I'm sure are more than happy. More importantly however, they have delivered a world class performance to South African consumers - they may have lost ground to Woolworths in certain areas, but you can be sure that they have a strong team working very hard to gain that back.

Exciting times are ahead at Pick 'n Pay with a further 59 stores planned for this year, on top of the 49 already opened last year. The opening of six new Hypermarkets is an aggressive, well timed move that in my mind will significantly strengthen that division and its contribution to the group.

On the salary issue, the shareholders are the only ones who matter, and they will tell you that for that price, he comes cheap, so it is not really an issue at all.

Craig Ballantyne
craig@fastmoving.co.za

Please feel free to make comments or raise new issues by emailing the editor
editor@fastmoving.co.za

NEWSBYTES

March retail sales up
According to reports from Statistics South Africa, South Africa's retail sales, the primary indicator of consumer demand, rose by 10.9% in the year to March at constant prices. In the three months to March, retail sales rose by 9.4% compared with the same period 12 months ago, also at constant prices.
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Pick 'n Pay chief takes home R23.7m
In the group's annual report, it was reported that Pick 'n Pay chief executive Sean Summers received a remuneration package of R10.2 million in financial 2006, which was boosted to R23.7 million by a profit of R13.5 million on shares that he sold during the year. The report disclosed for the first time, in line with the new disclosure requirements, the estimated expense incurred by the company in issuing options to the executive directors.
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P 'n P sets their sight on 59 new stores
Some interesting developments came out of the Pick 'n Pay annual report, released last Tuesday. One of the highlights was that Pick 'n Pay are planning on opening a further 59 stores in the next year - this follows the 49 new stores that were opened in the last year.
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GSK offers $15bn for Pfizer unit
It has been reported that in one of several bids received, GlaxoSmithKline has offered $15 billion (R102 billion) for Pfizer's consumer unit. Johnson & Johnson and the UK's Reckitt Benckiser had also offered more than $14 billion.

Sea Harvest, Union settle differences
Sea Harvest can breathe easy for a while with employees back at work following the recent two week strike. There are still rough seas ahead though, with the business now having to restore profitability. In the six months to March they reported a R9.6 million loss due to smaller catches, higher fuel costs and the strong rand Renumeration Committee.
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GLOBAL NEWS

Morrisons appoints new chief executive
Ending months of speculation, Morisons in the UK yesterday announced that it has appointed Marc Bolland to replace Bob Stott as chief executive and also stated that David Jones will retire as deputy chairman at the end of this month. Bolland begins his new role from September 1st.

Wal-Mart pledges to continue change
In a keynote speech to shareholders, associates, managers and company leaders at the company's annual meeting last Friday, CEO Lee Scott described Wal-Mart's ongoing transformation as delivering results for the company and the customers and the communities Wal-Mart serves. Calling the transformation plan "Wal-Mart Out in Front," Scott pledged to continue implementing changes that have driven growth and efficiency at Wal-Mart this year.
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SPECIAL FEATURES

New launches - AC Nielsen In 2005, South Africa saw the launch of over 10,500 new items in the local FMCG market. However, the high number of local new launches is not enough to draw conclusions about success. It must be measured as to whether new launches made any impact on competitors, relevant categories or their own master brands. Read more.

Find out how Aldi works - Planet Retail Over the years, both admiration and criticism have followed Aldi's expansion around the globe. In fact, few retailers have prompted as much debate amongst consumers, full-range competitors and manufacturers. And no other retailer has achieved the near cult-like following that Aldi enjoys in its home market, Germany. So, what's behind this discount phenomenon? Is it more than just a low price guarantee? Read more.

FEATURED BRAND

Tydstroom Farm Fresh Chicken You'll taste the difference and love the goodness. Read more.

BRAND NEW

NEW! New healthcare range from Clicks In line with Private Label being one of Clicks' strategic areas of focus for growth, a range of exciting new products were introduced onto their shelves during the month of May 2006. With the majority of the product lines focussed on strengthening the immune system, our timing with the cold winter months ahead, could not be better! Read more.

NEW! Danone Clover Activia now available in SA Thanks to a media focus on digestive disorders, more and more consumers are adopting healthier diets. Yoghurt has always been popular with the health conscious, and it's about to become even more popular, with the introduction of new Danone Clover Activia. Read more.

NEW! New look, better taste for Coke Light Coca-Cola light is being re-launched in South Africa, with a new look and better taste. The move follows extensive quantitative research, during which local consumers confirmed their preference for the fresh packaging graphics and improved reformulation that will be available in-store from June. Read more.

BRAND ACTIVITY

Bakers Mini Cricket delegation tours the Boland Representatives from Bakers Mini Cricket and the United Cricket Board (UCB) recently undertook a two-day tour of the West Coast and attended Bakers Mini Cricket training clinics, coaching sessions and festivals held in the region. Read more.

Game returns to Ladysmith
The 69th Game Store opened in the Kingsgate Centre in Ladysmith on May 31. The cheers that greeted the opening of the doors were a sign that Game had been missed and that the discount retailer's return to the region after seven years had been eagerly awaited.
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WINE, BEER & SPIRITS

Enjoy a Swartland wine, opera and Italian pasta evening Book your tickets now for a wonderful Italian inspired evening on Tuesday 20 June, when Swartland Winery presents their Indalo wine in association with Fine Music Radio 101.3. Entertainment for the evening will be provided by acclaimed tenor Jannie Moolman. Read more.

Clos Malverne takes triple gold Stellenbosch wine farm Clos Malverne has struck a golden vein of form on this year's international and local wine-competition circuit, with three of its premium reds winning gold medals. Read more.

Weltevrede Oupa se Wyn receives excellence award Oupa se Wyn (Grandfather's Wine), a red muscadel from Oupa se Wingerd (Grandfather's Vineyard) has just received the platinum award for excellence from the Muscadel Association of South Africa. Read more.

FEATURED RETAIL SERVICES

Thinking big - Spending Small? Let UCS Solutions help your company become the retail star of tomorrow... UCS Solutions is hosting a breakfast to introduce the power of SAP Retail - come and explore key retail trends and how retail applications are evolving to respond to these. Read more.

Nicolene Di Bartolo scoop Business Times Careers Awards Both Nicolene Di Bartolo Management Appointments, as well as our partner company, Strategy Recruitment Marketing, have won awards for best Black and White Display Adverts by the Sunday Times and Business Times within the Senior Executive/Professional/Admin/Finance and Sales/Marketing/Retail categories. Read more.

Marot & Sanders As Retail Image Specialists, Marot & Sanders are uniquely positioned to boost your brand identity at every level of interaction with the retail consumer. Read more.

RETAIL SUPPORT

SAP partners with TATIS SA on customs and border management Creating a competitive advantage in the customs and border management market for both companies, Geneva-based TATIS SA customs management specialists and global business solutions giant, SAP AG, have formed an alliance partnership in which they will jointly market and implement the world's only customs management system (TATIScms) that is integrated with a tax management system (SAP PSCD). Read more.

MTN says hello to bus advertising The use of moving media has taken off as the more exciting alternative to static billboards, reaching a diversity of commuters through bus, taxi and train advertising and achieving both regional and national exposure, to meet the campaign's target audience. One of the most impressive moving media campaigns is the MTN buses. MTN has acquired space on the transit buses that carry passengers to and from aircraft, achieving magnified exposure by their movement around airports. Read more.

FASTMOVERS

New HR group director for Clicks New Clicks Holdings have extended their senior management team with the appointment of Bertina Engelbrecht as group director for human resources and organisational development with effect from 1 July 2006.

EVENTS

Get "Ready to Retail"
13 June 2006 - Woodmead
Join UCS in exploring key retail trends and how retail applications are evolving to respond to these.
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Building Quality Information Conference
13 June - Durban, 15 June - Cape Town, 20 June - Johannesburg
GS1 South Africa, along with ECR South Africa and PDC.za will be hosting a conference about Global Data Synchronisation (GDS) as a building block for a collaborative supply chain and how it provides real business benefits.
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Swartland wine, opera and Italian pasta evening
20 June 2006 - Cape Town
Join Swartland at the Societi Bistro at the V&A Waterfront for a night of wine, opera and Italian pasta with special entertainment from acclaimed tenor Jannie Moolman.
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Nederburg Exclusive Winter Dinner
24 June 2006 - Cape Town
An exclusive five-course dinner in Nederburg's historic manor house.
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Finding the Fortune at the Bottom of the South African Pyramid
12 July 2006 - Parktown
Eighty20 brings you a fascinating overview of the low-income market in South Africa.
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SOCAP Breakfast Event
14 July 2006 - Fourways Crossing
Brad Arden, Director of TQ² Consulting: Building Team Intelligence at Work talks about "Service is a Team Sport".
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Annual Franschhoek Bastille Celebrations
15-16 July 2006 - Cape Town
A "great food and great wine" themed festival to be held in Franschhoek.
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Africa's Big Seven 2006
23-25 July 2006 - Midrand
An integrated exhibition platform that showcases food, retail and FMCG products together with the processes to manufacture them.
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Cleantex Africa 2006
23-25 July 2006 - Midrand
Africa's hygiene, cleaning, maintenance, pest control and facility management services exhibition.
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The Jo'burg Wine Show
28 - 30 July - Gallagher Estate
A three-day event affording the opportunity to learn, try and buy wines in a relaxed and unassuming setting.
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Nedbank Cape Winemakers Guild Auction
17 August 2006 - Camps Bay
Discover the exceptional wines South Africa's leading winemakers will be offering at the 21st Nedbank Cape Winemakers Guild Auction.
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The 3rd South African Red Bull Box Cart Race
27 August 2006 - Johannesburg
One cart, 4 team members, an operational steering wheel, functional brakes and a hooter…
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RMB WineX Cape Town
30 August - 1 September 2006 - CTICC
WineX offers a comprehensive showcase of over 1 200 wines per night from more than 200 of the country's top wineries.
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Good Food & Wine Show
2 - 5 November 2006 - Gallagher Estate
South Africa's largest food, wine and lifestyle celebration.
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THE FAST MOVING FACT

Statistics show that more than 138 million customers visit Wal-Mart stores per week worldwide.

For Fast Moving Fact submissions, please e-mail editor@fastmoving.co.za