Food Service - Deli & HMR - Catering to your Target Market

Food service, home meal replacement (HMR) and deli services are integral to supermarket offerings in South Africa, regardless of location or footprint. Whatever your target market and business model, the key tenets of these categories are convenience and providing delicious, quality food. This may be grab-and-go deli style, freshly prepared hot meals and speciality foods through your food service offering, or heat-and-eat home meal solutions for the whole family.

In 2026 and beyond, this convenience is even easier to achieve as food service, deli, and HMR move towards an AI-powered automated future. With renewed focus on energy efficiency and sustainability, as well as modular designs for space-saving and multifunctional equipment that promises to save time while reducing costs and waste, the future is looking bright. In terms of what retailers and wholesalers are serving, demographics play an important role. Where budgets are less constrained, consumers look for balanced, nutritious, functional options that suit their health requirements as much as their need for experiences and great taste. Portion size and value for money become more important when budgets are under pressure and the consumer perception is that bigger portions offer more value, with less emphasis on the nutri tional value of the serving.

Key trends for 2026

Balance: nutritious foods and little luxuries combine to create a way of eating that is healthy for mind and body.

Nostalgia and nouveau: traditional or classic comfort foods are elevated using refined recipes or ingredients and imaginative twists to old favourites.

Functional foods: meals high in protein, fibre, anti oxi dants and superfoods that support various bodily systems and functions are taking centre stage.

Plant-based alternatives: as meat-based proteins become increasingly expensive and shortages loom, plant-based options are coming to the fore in providing nutritious options.

Value for money: specialised combos, value meals and value adds are popular offerings that can help to drive sales and attract customers looking for filling, tasty and inexpensive meal solutions.

Affordable and accessible

Local retailers understand that their HMR and deli offerings must appeal to their shopper demo graphic, which can be diverse. High-end stores have recognised that their customers include shop assistants and day labourers who need convenient, nutritious, affordable options, particularly in the grab-and-go category. Providing these options alongside speciality offerings such sushi trays and designer salads help these stores capture both convenience markets.

Local retailer groups such as Shoprite Holdings and Food Lover’s Market understand this well. Shoprite focuses on lower-to-middle income consumers and provides a pocket-friendly option for staples and great deals on essentials. Checkers, on the other hand, targets the premium market with a wider, high-end range that competes with retailers such as Woolworths. Food Lover’s Market has always catered to a wide variety of consumers, offering niche HMR, food service and deli products alongside budget-friendly options.

Unilever Food Solutions has a range of value boosting menu ideas for budget-friendly meals, economy savers and nostalgia-harnessing recipes that fit the bill of convenient, affordable and deli cious. Their ‘deli counter food ideas’ are presented as a way to drive profitability while also answering consumer demand. The website also has a selection of free-to-download recipe books with titles such as ‘More Ways With Chicken’, ‘The Hot Veg Report’ and ‘Reimagined Classics’ to provide ideas and inspiration to those in the food service business.

Food producer and equipment supplier Freddy Hirsch says successful HMR is about understanding your market and being willing to innovate. “Snacking, minimising food waste and creating vegetarian options are three trends to consider. Customers want the same quality and freshness from their snacks as they would expect from other pre-prepared foods. When it comes to food waste, consider re-working leftover foods to create innovative deli dishes and to reduce food waste at the same time to create tasty, convenient foods that maximise efficiency. Meatless dishes have become more popular as consumers strive to incorporate plant-based options into their diets, so try and create enticing solutions for them.”

Go-to Gourmet

For many local consumers, convenience needs to go hand-in-hand with quality. Shoppers looking for an easy but elevated experience rely on more high-end offerings that include international influences and more exotic dishes alongside artisanal, hand-made and luxe options. Spar Gourmet at Zimbali Oasis in Ballito, Kwa Zulu-Natal is a new concept store that presents itself as a ‘revolutionary lifestyle experience’, blending Spar’s traditional values with a modern, high-end grocery retail experience. With curated gourmet meals, premium private-label ranges and exclusive imported products, the deli offers meals prepared from scratch by highly trained chefs in a modern kitchen. These include wood-fired pizzas, poke bowls, Asian-inspired dishes and healthy salads. The store also features four daily signature dishes on the menu, gourmet fast food, a speciality butcher shop, and a dessertery with ‘curated indulgence for every occasion’. According to an article about the store on News 24, “the deli showcases the store’s food philosophy with simple food done exceptionally well by scratch chefs.

Read the full article here - Food Service, Deli & HMR: Catering to your target market

Whatsapp