Women in retail are a force to be reckoned with
Female retailers are formidable as well as inspirational and nowhere is this clearer than in the contribution they have made to growing the Shoprite Group into the largest retailer in Africa.
This women’s month, let’s celebrate these women who show up every day and ensure that things get done. They are wives, mothers, sisters, friends, cashiers, till packers, managers, and so much more. Their collective energies harnessed 40 years has been instrumental in the Group growing from eight small stores in the Western Cape to 2800 outlets across the African continent.
One of these women is the retailer’s Group Talent and Resource Manager, Chantal Syce, whose job allows her to live out her passion to connect people with their potential and watch them grow in confidence and capability. With 22 years of experience in human resources, she has ambitions to complete a doctoral degree and advises young women who want to succeed in business to “cultivate the habit of listening; to read, read, read; and to find good role models and allow themselves to grow through constructive feedback.”
Kimberly Soobramoney has made great strides in a relatively short period having joined the Group as a trainee accountant in 2013. Today she is the Divisional Financial Manager responsible for 113 Shoprite supermarkets and 60 LiquorShops in Gauteng.
For her no two days are ever the same and this is what keeps her motivated and energised. She believes that working hard and having a positive attitude is what brought her thus far. “These qualities will not only stand you in good stead in business, but also in every other aspect of your life,” she adds.
Hazel Nzama won the award for the Group’s best regional manager within a year of her appointment to this position. Based in Kwa-Zulu Natal she oversees operations at nine supermarkets and seven LiquorShops.
She started as a trainee manager in 2005 and quickly rose through the ranks to her current position. “I have worked hard and made many sacrifices in my life to get to this point,” says the mother of one, who has her sights set on the position of divisional manager.
For more stories about inspirational women in retail, read about the journeys of:
