Not too long ago, Edgars looked like a relic of a bygone era — a department store chain caught between fast fashion, discount rivals and a rapid shift to online shopping. Its collapse under the old Edcon empire might have marked the end of an icon.
But new owner Retailability — which snapped up the ailing fashion retailer six years ago — looks poised to pull off what many experts regarded as an impossible turnaround. After rigorous rightsizing and restructuring, Retailability is on track to put the brand firmly back on the rails. The development might even give heart to punters backing the strenuous turnarounds at other struggling retailers, such as JSE-listed Pick n Pay and Spar.
The big news is that Edgars plans to open 50 new stores over the next two years — an ambitious thrust considering the network sits at around 100 outlets.
The retailer is looking for bigger profits from a smaller footprint. In 2020 it was carrying 470,000m² of retail space. Today that figure stands at 330,000m². By March next year it will operate between 280,000m² and 300,000m².
The contradiction in having more stores but crimping space is explained by the group’s emphasis on a smaller format. This small-format concept — dubbed the Edgars Community Store — averages around 600m² and is a fraction of the size of a traditional Edgars outlet. The group has identified roughly 50 sites for the rollout, targeting precincts it previously had to exit because the older, larger formats couldn’t generate enough turnover.
New openings are planned for Irene Mall in Pretoria this month, Jeffreys Bay and the Cape Town CBD around September and Queenstown in November. The Cape Town move is notable — recall that Edgars once ran a sprawling 6,000m² store in the CBD before closing it ahead of the group’s business rescue. Edgars is confident that its “small-box” format can trade profitably in central Cape Town.
Encouragingly, Edgars is already reporting improved trading densities, as measured by sales per square metre and effectively a proxy for store efficiency. Density improved 6% in the programme’s first 12 months and jumped to 21% in the year to March 2026. Store-level profitability has followed a similar path, up around 16% over the past year — a remarkable result compared to recent results reported by the handful of large JSE-listed fashion retailing entities.
There might well be an argument that in a retail market where most players are under pressure, Edgars — as a nimbler, privately held business — can react faster than its listed peers. It also seems to be taking competitive pressures from disruptive online retailers such as Shein and Temu in its stride.
Retailability CEO Norman Drieselmann argues that the Edgars in-store experience, particularly around beauty and family-orientated activations, is something pure online retailers can’t replicate. The group is also exploring two new categories: additional beauty ranges and men’s and women’s activewear lines.
For now, it seems Edgars is able to fund its new format rollout from cash flows. In terms of future fundraising options, there are currently no plans to take Edgars (once controlled by South African Breweries) back to the JSE. Market conditions aren’t exactly conducive either.
Perhaps in the medium term a listing could be revisited for a new-look, profitable Edgars … possibly coinciding with the brand’s 100-year milestone?