RetailingAfrica.com, a groundbreaking news platform dedicated to the retailing and consumer goods sector in South Africa and Africa, has officially launched in February 2020. This innovative platform aims to provide independent, research-based content, offering exclusive news, expert opinions, and insightful analyses within one of the fastest-growing and highly dynamic business domains in Africa.
RetailingAfrica.com will focus on retailers, brands, and consumer insights across the African continent, covering a wide range of topics, including the rapid growth of e-commerce and m-commerce, the expanding middle class, the booming infrastructure supporting logistics, the widespread adoption of technology, and many other pertinent subjects.
According to Louise Burgers, the founding editor and publisher, the timing couldn't be more perfect for the introduction of a journalism-oriented, retail-focused media brand. The Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), set to reshape the African continent in the coming decade, is poised to dismantle trade barriers and establish the largest global trading bloc. Burgers highlights the crucial role of business-to-business media during challenging times, offering industry support and providing businesses with strategies and solutions for recovery.
Burgers, who holds a Master's degree in strategy and has been recognized as an award-winning editor for prominent industry trade publications such as Bizcommunity.com, AdVantage, Marketing Mix, and Progressive Retailing magazines, has previously led and guided some of South Africa's most influential media brands in marketing, media, advertising, and FMCG retailing.
Retailing Africa is a collaborative effort with Herman Manson, a respected figure in the media and marketing industry and an award-winning editor who founded the renowned advertising and marketing news portal, MarkLives.com. Positioned as a sister site to MarkLives, Retailing Africa will be promoted to MarkLives' readership of 40,000 marketing and advertising agency executives.
Manson and Burgers have been colleagues across various media brands for over a decade, sharing a belief in the power of journalism-driven news as the most trustworthy model for the media industry. They see it as a means to regain credibility in an era plagued by "fake news." Inspired by the success of MarkLives.com, they have now embarked on the launch of RetailingAfrica.com.
Prior to its official launch, the platform has already garnered support from several industry sponsors, including Ogilvy South Africa, an esteemed advertising agency, Apex Visibility, a leading data solutions company, and DUKE, an emerging independent marketing agency.
Manson asserts that their experience with MarkLives has demonstrated that media projects centered around traditional journalism can achieve commercial success, contribute to the overall well-being of the industries they cover, and maintain editorial independence and sustainability without resorting to click-bait tactics. He emphasizes that trade journalism, often overlooked by much of the media industry, is far from obsolete. Retailing Africa aims to disrupt the business-to-business media landscape, and the initial feedback from sponsors and industry players has been overwhelmingly positive. The platform enters the market during a pivotal and transformative period for the retailing sector in Africa.