How Massmart is gearing up for Black Friday

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JIMMY MOYAHA: Let’s Look at Black Friday – it’s coming up this Friday. For those who haven’t planned it is already too late. If you don’t have the budget, just let it go. You’ll try again next year. For those who have planned and are looking forward to it, let’s get a sense of where the best deals are going to be coming from.

I’m joined by Michelle Kemp – who’s a senior manager for communications at Massmart – to take a look at what Massmart is doing for Black Friday.

Good evening, Michelle. Thanks so much for taking the time. We can start with any of the Massmart family stores. But how is this Black Friday different from every other one that we’ve had, given that we’ve just gone through a pandemic and people are probably looking for some things that they couldn’t get a couple of years ago?

MICHELLE KEMP: Hello Jimmy, thank you so much for having me this evening. To answer your question, the best deals that you’re going to get are at Builders [Warehouse and Builders Express], Game or Makro this Black Friday. The economic climate is a little different, and we’ve taken the time to really listen to what our customers expect from us and what they really want from a Black Friday this year.

So you’ll notice that we did something a little differently. We’ve extended our deals for the entire month of Black Friday across Builders, Makro and Game.

This is because of what our customers told us. They wanted more time to shop the deals.

They wanted more time to compare the deals, and they quite frankly just wanted a little more time to go in store, be online – and put it in their baskets and their trolleys.

JIMMY MOYAHA: So where are we getting the best deals? Which of the stores should we visit first? I know a lot of people don’t have time to go through all three stores, and a lot of the stuff is similar. I remember Massmart tried to do a product differentiation by saying certain things [such as] go to Builders for certain things, Dion for certain things, Game for certain things. But now – do I get my TV from Makro? Do I get my TV from Game?

MICHELLE KEMP: The best advice we give to our customers is to look at all three. You can go online on the website, look at what product you’re looking for specifically.

So you’ll find your more premium, higher-end products are at Makro. If you’re looking for a 100-inch Skyworth TV, you’ll find that at Makro. If you are looking for a 55-inch Samsung TV, you’ll find that also at Makro, but at Game as well.

It’s also about what is closer to you in proximity. Would you go into one of our over 100 stores in Game, one of our 22 nationwide for Makro? You can order online, you can pick up – so you have a range of options and my best advice for customers is to shop around, have a look at the deals that you are really looking for. Compare the prices and take us up on our offers.

What’s interesting for us, Jimmy, is this year our customers are very keen on groceries and essential items. So we have brought in more grocery items, more pantry loaders – particularly within the Makro space. So you’ll see bulk buying behaviours from our customers in a Makro. And then at Game one of our most popular items this year has been toilet paper, as well as Choice Assorted biscuits and soft drinks by Coca-Cola.

JIMMY MOYAHA: That’s not surprising. Toilet paper is exceptionally expensive. I remember I walked into a Spar, I think, or one of the other retailers, and an 18-pack of BabySoft was near R200. So I’m not surprised that toilet paper is on special. Those who wish to stock up, by all means go for it.

Let’s look at the price match, Michelle. The Massmart Group or Game for a certain number of years has historically had this policy to match prices. Is that something that’s going to be continuing? Is that something that you guys have going on for Black Friday?

MICHELLE KEMP: Not this year, because we believe our prices are exceptional. So we’re not going to be price-beating on Black Friday promotional items, but we will be beating prices on any normal items, also going into the festive period. We just believe our prices are really good and we’re standing by them this year.

JIMMY MOYAHA: If the prices are so good, what happens if I miss a special? I know that Game has said you’ve got certain specials on certain weeks, and if you miss that special you’ve missed out. What if I miss a special because I couldn’t get to a store at that time?

MICHELLE KEMP: It’s also one of the reasons why we decided to have it across a month; it was to give people more time. So we’ve had our specials run weekly, for seven days a week. And this week our specials are going to be running until November 28, next week, Tuesday. We understand the people are getting paid over the weekend and on Friday, so customers can come in from today right up until next week Tuesday. And again, just have a look at our online [offers]. If you can’t get into a physical store, please go to Game.co.za and have a look and purchase there.

JIMMY MOYAHA: Michelle, as a group Massmart has quite a big range across various things, as you said – whether you need a TV, whether you need groceries, whether you need a pitchfork from Builders – for goodness knows what reason. The business has pretty much all of the products covered that consumers might need. Are there going to be special products or special services that are offered in this Black Friday time to enhance the experience for consumers?

MICHELLE KEMP: We spend a lot of time going through the detail of what customers expect at this time of year.

So for Builders, for example, you’ll see that we’ve got specials on paint and on air conditioners, because that’s what we know customers need at this time of year. They’re looking to improve their homes. It’s also incredibly hot. We’re all in this heat wave, so we’ve brought those items to the fore.

But on top of that we’ve got services like installation. So you are going to save massively on installing that air conditioner from Builders, from a Makro, and from a Game.

We’ve also got TV installation services.

So if you’re not too good with tech, like I am, we’ve got a very qualified team who’s going to bring through your TV, install it, make sure it’s up and running, that all of your apps are downloaded – and you can just press play and get going from there.

So it’s not only about the product, but also how we are showing up for customers to make sure they have a wonderful experience from us at any of our three stores.

JIMMY MOYAHA: Is there free delivery?

MICHELLE KEMP: Yes, purchase is up to R500 at a Makro.

JIMMY MOYAHA: Oh, lovely.

MICHELLE KEMP: Yes. We’re trying to bring value where we can. We know where customers are at, and so we are looking for those extra value-adds that we can give.

JIMMY MOYAHA: Well, there you have it folks. Anyone looking for extra value? This Black Friday Massmart says they’re giving all the value away across Makro, Game, Builders Warehouse and all their other businesses.

Thanks so much, Michelle. That was Michelle Kemp, who is the senior manager for communications at Massmart, giving us a sense of how Massmart is preparing for Black Friday.