Wallmart Loans Massmart R4 Billion to Help Game and Makro Recover from July Unrest

• The July unrest is still affecting companies such as Game Store and Makro, which are still trying to recover
• Most of these stores were able to make a small recovery on Black Friday, however, there are still some stores that remain closed
• Massmart, which owns companies such as Game and Makro, will be receiving a huge boost in the form of a loan from its US parent Company, Wallmart

JOHANNESBURG - Massmart, the parent company of Game and Makro, says the effects of the destruction that was caused during the civil unrest in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal are still being felt nearly six months later.

Despite the damage caused by the unrest, Massamart says Black Friday really helped the stores boost sales, exceeding last year's figures.

However, there are a number of stores that were not able to enjoy the full benefits of Black Friday because they were either partially operational or still shut down because of the damage during the riots, according to Fin24.

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In Springfield and Pietermaritzburg, two Makro stores are still closed down and a few Game stores remain damaged. The unrest also saw Massmart losing two big Makro stores and 41 other stores were severely damaged.

IOL reports that the closing down of the Springfield store had a negative impact on customers who complained about not being to do their shopping in Durban.

The company says it would cost approximately R2.5 billion to replace all the stock that was damaged and looted, including repairs to the stores that were damaged. Massmart says even if it receives the insurance payout from Sasria, there will still be an accounting loss of R650 million.

Around R450 million was lost during July and December because some stores could not trade as normal.

Wallmart, which is the United States of America parent company of Massmart, is willing to loan the company R4 billion to recover from the impact of the unrest and boost the company's balance sheet.

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Jobs safe for Game and Makro staff despite widespread theft and damage

Briefly News previously reported that Massmart, the company that owns Makro and Game, says that employees' jobs are safe while they rebuild and restock their stores in the wake of the violent looting.

Many South Africans are concerned about their jobs after many companies had their warehouses and stores looted and vandalised in the unrest.

Brian Leroni, Massmart's senior vice-president, said that 43 of its facilities in KwaZulu-Natal were affected by the unrest.

He said that the company's priority was to make sure its employees were safe and that the company's physical assets were secure.

Source: Briefly News