The Shoprite brand is a popular one both in Nigeria and in many African countries. It is arguably one of the biggest retail chains on the continent presently operating in fourteen African countries. Although many people know the brand to be from South Africa, not many know the brain behind it. We will tell you about him in this article.
Christoffel Wiese is the de-facto owner of the retail giant and he is worth a collective $1.1 billion according to Forbes.
How big is Shoprite?
According to its official website, Shoprite is the largest supermarket retailer on the African Continent.
- It has over 505 outlets in Africa.
- It is present in 14 African countries.
- It has over 2387 corporate stores and 17 brands.
- Shoprite directly or indirectly employs at least 140,000 employees in Africa.
Meet Christoffel Wiese, the retail billionaire
Mr Wiese is the largest individual shareholder in Shoprite and undoubtedly one of the leading entrepreneurs on the continent. He owns 10.7% of shares in Shoprite Holdings according to Market Watch.
Christoffel Wiese holds a Bachelor’s degree in Law and practised the profession for some time before assuming the position of an executive director in Pepkor, a small clothing chain his parents founded. The business saw tremendous growth under his leadership and he later proceeded to buy out Shoprite when it was still a small chain of stores in South Africa.
He assumed the position of Chairman at Shoprite Holdings and the rest, they say is history. Weise grew Shoprite into the retail behemoth that it is today spanning 14 African countries and employing over 140,000 workers.
Christoffel Wiese was once the richest man in South Africa. His finances have dipped according to Boomberg but Forbes still pegs his net worth at $1.1 billion. He is 79 years old and is set to retire soon.
What you should know
- Shoprite Holdings is not the only company Mr Wiese owns. In fact, Shoprite is just one department of his retail business.
- He owns Pepkor a renowned South Africa-based retail investment holding company that deals mainly in low-price markets, primarily selling textiles, clothing and footwear.
- He is also a Non-Executive Chairman at Invicta Holdings Ltd., a diversified industrial goods wholesale company.