(Photo: Christine Oelofse/Maroela Media)
R28 for 2 kg of rice and R11,99 per kg for flour. These are the kind of prices that turn heads and in Diepsloot, Gauteng, this is exactly what helps SKUBU customers to make their money go just that little bit further.
SKUBU is South Africa’s first fully automated refill store that aims to provide basic groceries at an affordable price to low-income consumers.
At SKUBU, shopping works slightly differently.
Instead of buying products whose packaging drives up the price even further, consumers can replenish their groceries and cleaning products themselves – and in the exact quantities they need.
The concept is simple: Consumers buy a SKUBU card for R10. After that, you load money on the card and buy when it suits you. Consumers can take products home in their own containers, or use the free plastic bags.
For many consumers, this is a simple, affordable way to shop and because consumers only pay for the product and not for the container or brand, you can pay up to 60% less than at many of the biggest retailers.
Other cleaning products at SKUBU are the original Handy Andy, Domestos and OMO. (Photo: Christine Oelofse/Maroela Media)
With Maroela Media’s visit to SKUBU, we looked at what we could buy with R100.
It was Maroela Media’s first visit to this popular store and we therefore had to pay R10 for a card, and consequently also reduce our budget for groceries to R90.
However, we were still able to buy 750 ml of cooking oil at R20, 99; 2.5 kg of maize flour for R22.99; Sunlight washing powder at R27,99 for 1 kg, and 400 ml of Sunlight Liquid dish soap at R14,99. The shopping cost us a total of R96.96 (with our store card included).
At some traditional retailers, 1 kg of maize flour will cost you between R19,99 and R23, while 5 kg of maize flour can set you back between R80 and R83. Other staples available at SKUBU include flour, sugar, rice, coffee creamer and even water.
Other cleaning products at SKUBU are the original Handy Andy, Domestos and OMO.
Ebenezer de Jongh opened two SKUBU branches at the Chuma Mall and the Bambanani shopping center opened in Diepsloot. De Jongh says he intends to open another 30 SKUBU branches in South Africa in the next two years.
(Photo: Christine Oelofse/Maroela Media)
“This innovation not only reduces waste, but also radically lowers prices for consumers by enabling fixed prices per liter or kilogram, regardless of refill size. SKUBU’s aim is to sell well-known brands at an affordable price.
“It took us years to develop the model and we decided to follow the automatic route, because from a customer’s point of view it is unacceptable that food is touched or scooped out, for the sake of hygiene. That is why everything must be automated,” says De Jongh.
Although Diepsloot, like many other parts of South Africa, is often plagued by crime, Maroela Media felt safe the whole time during our visit to SKUBU. There were more than enough security officers at the store and the centre, as well as visible policing in this area.