Low-cost retailer Pepkor Holdings shrugged off its links to former parent company Steinhoff International and withstood the recessionary climate, expanding its retail footprint by more than 400 stores this year and planning to open 300 more in the new year.
Previously known as Steinhoff Retail Africa, Pepkor Holdings released its first financial results under its new name on Monday, reporting revenue up by 10.9% to R64.2-billion with operating profit up by 10.7% to R6.4-billion.
This excludes a once-off R511-million write-down because of Pepkor’s exposure to a previously undisclosed management incentive plan. The JSE announced, also on Monday and before the results, that Pepkor was being fined R5-million because the company failed to reveal its loan agreements and debt guarantees for management and Steinhoff.
Pepkor’s share price fell by 1.4% when the JSE announcement was made on Monday, but had recovered by Wednesday morning.
The retailer increased its store footprint by 428 stores in 2018, 358 of which were in the clothing and merchandise division.
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