You were previously signed up to Reveal’s Shoptalk newsletter — Shoptalk is no more, but we have replaced it with a new regular view on some of our most interesting SA retail spending data.

So welcome to this edition of INSIGHTS, a newsletter by Reveal.

In this week’s edition:

The South African Reserve Bank kept interest rates unchanged in its recent monetary policy meeting. This follows a series of rate cuts that have seen interest rates come down 125 basis points since 2024. 

When interest rates go up, naturally, less is spent on home and DIY as consumers shift towards essentials. But what happens when interest rates ease?

With rates coming down, every R1 million borrowed at prime interest rate resulted in ±R819 less interest paid per month. Is the money now flowing back into places where it contracted?

This week, we take a look at the Home, Garden and DIY market, and the change in spending over the last year.

Average customer spending per retailer has seen mostly year-on-year increases, with all four retailers analysed* showing strong growth in June 2025, right after the 25 basis points cut on 29 May.

While it’s hard to say the rate cut alone caused the jump, the timing suggests that extra cash flow gave consumers more room to spend. Overall, it’s a positive sign for the sector as spending picks up.

Builder’s Warehouse stands out in the graph as one that has consistently been able to increase customer spend, but this wasn’t enough to see them capture increased market share.

Increased average spend per transaction was not enough to prevent Builder’s Warehouse from losing spending share to all three competitors in the sample, going from 31% in July 2023 - July 2024, to 26% in July 2024 - July 2025.

The impact of the reduced spend at Builder’s Warehouse is likely due to them attracting fewer unique customers for the same period. Their unique customer share dropped by 5% over the period.

With fewer (although in most cases, bigger) stores, Builder’s Warehouse’s ability to reach unique customers could be impacting its ability to grow its market share.

But while market share is decreasing for Builder’s Warehouse, the good news is that the increased spend will bring about some momentum that could likely continue as more rate cuts are predicted towards the end of the year.

Prosus-owned OLX is buying French motors classified platform La Centrale in a R22.4-billion deal. The move puts OLX firmly in the European car market and bolsters Prosus’ growing e-commerce play, alongside its planned Just Eat Takeaway acquisition.

Pura Beverage has raised R260 million to boost its global footprint, with a big focus on the US. The low-sugar soda brand, launched in 2017, is carving into the trillion-dollar drinks market and positioning itself as South Africa’s next big export.

Boxer Retail lifted turnover 13.9% in the six months to August, with like-for-like sales up 5.3%. Earnings per share will dip due to its 2024 IPO share dilution, but the retailer stressed operations remain strong.

Reveal is transforming how businesses understand and act on consumer behaviour through powerful, transaction-based insights.

By analysing billions of rands in real-world spend data from over 350,000 South Africans, Reveal uncovers the patterns, shifts, and opportunities that traditional research often misses. 

Our intuitive dashboards and custom analytics empower retailers, brands, and agencies to make faster, data-driven decisions. Whether it’s 

✅ spotting category winners, 

✅ identifying high-value customers, or 

✅ tracking real-time market changes. 

For anyone needing a sharper lens on how South Africans actually shop, Reveal is the edge.

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