Mr Price Cellular, the mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) launched by Mr Price Group in 2017, has shown stunning growth in the past year, topping R1-billion in revenue for the first time.

The Durban-headquartered retail group’s telecommunications segment grew revenue by 34.4% in the past year, to R1.2-billion, far outstripping the growth of the country’s established mobile operators.

“Mr Price Cellular, launched in 2017, has reported exponential growth since inception and is now available in 374 stores with promising growth opportunities, most notably the roll-out of standalone stores,” the group said in its financial results for the 52 weeks ended 2 April 2022, published on Thursday.

“Cellular handsets and accessories gained 130 basis points of market share, according to Growth for Knowledge (190 basis points including Powercell in Power Fashion), a significant gain considering the disruption caused by global supply-chain challenges and the civil unrest during the period,” it added.

And it’s not only in cellular where Mr Price is excelling.

The group said online sales jumped 48.2% in the past year, against high growth in the previous year of 64.1%, taking e-commerce sales to 2.9% of total retail sales (2.3% excluding acquisitions).

“The group maintained its high customer engagement levels, which were best reflected by its online traffic market share increasing 70 basis points to 13.3%, the second highest behind Takealot among omnichannel and pure-play retailers.”

Sales jump

Overall, Mr Price Group reported full-year headline earnings per share up 20.1% (and more than a quarter on a directly comparable basis). Retail sales grew by 26%. The group opened 130 new stores, acquired seven others and reopened 96 of 111 stores that had been affected by last July’s riots in KwaZulu-Natal.