Business
Phuti Mahanyele and Shanduka Group- Catering to Africa’s Middle Class
Ms. Mahanyele says Shanduka has had discussions with McDonald’s, Coca-Cola and Glencore about expanding its partnerships across the continent. Right now, Shanduka has the franchise development rights for South Africa only but Ms. Mahanyele says there’s “significant” scope to grow food and beverage in the rest of the continent.
Greg Solomon, McDonald’s managing director in South Africa, says the fast-food chain’s “immediate focus is to maximize the growth potential of the South African market.” He adds: “There is no doubt that McDonald’s and Shanduka will have their eyes on Africa, but at this stage we are not actively pursuing development north of South Africa.”
That’s not stopping Ms. Mahanyele, who says she will continue to push the Africa story. While the rest of the continent is generally growing faster than South Africa, she won’t be content to stay at home.
Africa, as a continent, is seeing economic growth hovering above 5 percent, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), with rates forecast to approach 10 percent in growth hotspots such as Angola and Ghana this year. In addition, rising incomes have seen a consumer class begin to emerge. The African Development Bank projects Africa’s middle class, to increase to 1.1 billion people by 2060 and account for 42 percent of the continent’s population.
“When we look at rest of world and compare it to growth rates in Africa, you have to be seriously looking at Africa,” Ms. Mahanyele says.
She says the recipe for success in the rest of Africa will be partnerships with brands that have a good track record. “We see significant scope for the food industry and particularly McDonald’s in the rest of the African continent,” she says.
Shanduka, which has the majority ownership of one of four Coca-Cola bottling companies in South Africa, would also like to expand its partnership with the beverage maker elsewhere on the continent. Ms. Mahanyele says Shaduka would consider buying another bottling business in a country outside South Africa to serve Coca-Cola’s vast pan-Africa network. The soft-drinks giant said it doesn’t comment on prospective territories of bottling partners but said Shanduka is a “valued” partner, both in meeting its bottling needs and also its commitment to empowerment in South Africa.
