Spar Group said on Wednesday that its on-demand shopping platform, Spar2U, is nearing “critical mass” after expanding to 87 stores in the second half of its financial year to end-September 2022.

Spar launched Spar2U in the first half of the 2022 financial year, joining an increasingly crowded market that includes Shoprite Holdings’ Checkers Sixty60, Pick n Pay asap! and Woolworths’ Woolies Dash, among others.

Offering on-demand groceries and liquor, Spar2U has seen growing interest from Spar retailers wanting to utilise the platform.

“This is expected to enhance Spar’s ability to assist retailers in driving improved consumer service and engagement going forward. Rapid progress has been made with the onboarding of 87 sites as at 30 September 2022 and is about to reach critical mass,” the group said.

“This ‘as-a-service’ solution is uniquely tailor-made for the Spar interdependent retail model and takes all of the onerous effort out of our retailers’ hands, allowing them to focus on trading.”

There has been strong and growing demand for online grocery delivery since the Covid-19 lockdowns enticed many more South African consumers into shopping online.

On Monday, Shoprite said it had opened its first “dark store” – a store specifically to serve on-demand delivery.

Both Shoprite and rival Pick n Pay have reported strong improvements in online sales this year. In the 18 weeks ended 3 July 2022, Pick n Pay’s total online sales – which included scheduled delivery, click and collect and its asap! on-demand online service – grew by 97.3%.

Read: Pick n Pay launches online homeware store

In May, Pick n Pay and Naspers-owned Takealot Group announced that they had signed a commercial services agreement that would allow customers to buy Pick n Pay food, groceries and liquor on a new platform on Takealot’s Mr D app. – © 2022 NewsCentral Media