South African supermarket giant Pick n Pay raised almost $300 million by selling shares in its fast-growing discount unit to shore up its money-losing operations.
Pick n Pay sold a 12.5% stake in Boxer, which has seen its valuation surge since its IPO in 2024. The sale — which trimmed Pick n Pay’s stake to about 53% — gives the Cape Town-based retailer a much needed cash injection as CEO Sean Summers cuts costs, closes underperforming stores, and renegotiates staff contracts to save the company.
Pick n Pay, which competes with Shoprite, Africa’s biggest grocer, and Walmart’s South African unit, Massmart, has underperformed in the stock market for years. The board brought back Summers, who left the company in 2007 and was credited with making Pick n Pay the market leader during his eight-year tenure, to turn its fortunes around.