One of Nigeria’s biggest retail store, Shoprite is planning to sell its Nigerian Business to Persianas Group Nigeria, according to reports. The company in August last year classified its Nigerian business as a discontinued operation; after it was approached by potential investors willing to take over its Nigerian operations.

Reuters quoted a source who said the store was waiting for regulatory approval; to sell the business to a Nigerian real estate investment company, Persianas.

It claimed three bank sources confirmed the sale to Persianas Retail which operates autonomously from Persianas Group.

Shoprite owned by South African billionaire Mr. Christo Wiese as well as over 2,300 stores across Africa had decried that in 2018; revenue from other countries with the exemption of Nigeria only accounted for 11.6 per cent of sales; while South African operations contributed 78 per cent of overall sales.

By the second half of 2020, Shoprite said it lost 8.1 per cent of its sales to the September xenophobic reprisal attacks on South African owned firms in Nigeria in 2019.

Prior to the announcement of its planned divestment, the retail supermarket had operated in the country for 15 years.