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In South Africa, there is an active group of Chinese bosses. They open supermarkets, do catering, sell clothes, run factories, and buy goods from Yiwu and Guangzhou for offline sales. Nowadays, the younger “Chinese businessmen of the second generation” have started to explore different business models through online channels. Takealot, South Africa's leading e-commerce platform, has become their first stop to test the waters.

Huang Lin, a second-generation Chinese businessman who has lived in South Africa for more than a decade, followed his father in the factory business for a few years before opening an online store on Takealot in 2023, targeting middle-class South African families to sell outdoor sports and home décor products, with an average unit price of 320 yuan and gross profit of more than 60%. Another Chinese seller activated his store in November last year, with sales reaching nearly 400,000 RMB in just 20 days of opening.

The influx of Chinese sellers has also triggered “complaints” from local sellers: Chinese sellers offer lower prices, but Takealot allows them to deliver within 2-3 weeks, while local sellers do not have this “special care”. This shows that the platform's policy towards Chinese sellers is relatively friendly, and that now is a good time to enter the market.

I. Takealot's Opportunity: Low Competition, High Gross Margins, Low Return Rates

Takealot, the online business segment of Naspers, was founded in 2011 and has more than 200 million annual visitors, and like Amazon is both a self-operated and third-party seller business. In the last year (February 2025-January 2026), Takealot attracted about 233 million visitors, far more than the 0.69 billion on Amazon's South African site.

For Chinese sellers, Takealot is a “virgin land” that has yet to be reclaimed:

Less competition: Chinese sellers account for less than 3%

Higher gross margins: quality wigs can sell for tens of thousands of RMB, and gross margins on outdoor sports products exceed 60%

Extremely low return rate: average only 1%-2.5%, much lower than European platforms

A second-generation Chinese seller said that the price of goods sold on Takealot must not be low. This is because the platform's high shipping costs (at least R20 per parcel), coupled with 10%-15% commissions, naturally pushes up the selling price of goods, which only the middle-class South Africans are willing to bear. Therefore, products selling at prices higher than R200 (about R80) are more likely to survive.

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Second, localized selection: wigs, outdoor, home decoration is explosive

Sellers who capitalize on localized needs are more likely to run up profits. For example, wigs are a product that fits well with South African demand. Africans have poor hair quality and have a fervent demand for wigs - a black office lady can change three or four hairstyles a week. Top quality wigs can sell for tens of thousands of RMB, while affordable hair extensions for tens of dollars are also popular.

In addition, outdoor sports and home décor products also performed well, as exemplified by Huang Lin's store.

Third, logistics and cost: high freight is the biggest burden, how to choose the three models?

Takealot's logistics costs are a bigger burden for sellers. With a flat delivery fee of about $13-130 per order, the logistics cost for light and small items is usually around $21. This means that even light and small pieces have to maintain a high selling price to not lose money.

Comparison of three shipping modes:

Domestic direct mail/self-shipment: suitable for newbies to test the market, no need to stock up, but the delivery cycle is 10-20 days. It needs to be delivered to the collection warehouse in Shenzhen within 5 days after the order is issued, and there is a fine of R50 per order for overtime.

Official Warehouse Preparation: You need to prepare goods in advance to the local warehouse in South Africa, and deliver them to the platform warehouse within 3 days, so you can realize same-day or next-day delivery, get the platform traffic tilt, and enjoy the 35-day warehouse-free period. However, the cost of local warehousing is high - the monthly rent of 1,000 square meters of warehouse is about 24,000 yuan, plus the total cost of management fees is about 30,000-35,000 yuan.

Local stores: Local South African business license is required, can join the “Takealot Now” fast delivery service, more traffic support.

It is recommended that newbies test their money through self shipment first, and then turn to the official warehouse for stocking when the orders stabilize.

IV. Entry thresholds and fees: low subscription fees, commissions 4%-15%

Entry MethodsTakealot: Takealot is currently based on the invitation system, Chinese sellers need to submit applications through the official investment manager's invitation link or agents, the independent registration portal is not yet fully open.

Required information: Business license in China (enterprise or individual business), legal person ID card. A deposit of 200 USD is required, which will be returned after the first order.

Cost breakdown::

subscription: Approximately $18/month (approx. R300), free for the first 3 months of a new store

commissions:: 4%-15% (about 10% for household and 12% for digital)

logistics costs: $13-130/unit

storage charges: Free rent for the first 35 days of the official warehouse

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We provide domestic (Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing, Hangzhou, etc.) company registration, overseas (Hong Kong, the United States, Japan, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, etc.) company registration, Hong Kong identity application and renewal services, as well as covering the cross-border tax planning, shareholding structure design, compliance and risk control programs, and other full chain of corporate services.

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V. African e-commerce landscape: South Takealot, North Jumia

African e-commerce shows “regionalized differences”: Southern Africa is represented by Takealot, while Jumia covers 11 countries in West Africa, North Africa, etc. Jumia will be listed on NASDAQ in 2019, and its GMV will be about $1 billion in 2024. More than 80% of its international sellers are from China, contributing about a third of GMV.

However, Jumia has been losing money for a long time and exits markets such as South Africa in 2024. In contrast, Takealot is deeply committed to South Africa and has turned a profit. For sellers, Africa is not a market for low-priced shoppers; products with high unit prices that cover logistics and return costs are more profitable.

African e-commerce still has large room for growth - about 387 million users in 2022, and is expected to be close to 500 million in 2025, with a penetration rate close to 40%.

VI. In conclusion

Takealot annual visits of more than 200 million, Chinese sellers account for less than 3%, gross profit of more than 60%, return rate of only 1%-2.5%, monthly subscription fee as low as $18. Seize the localization of product selection (wigs, outdoor, home), reasonable choice of logistics mode (newbie first direct mail test models, explosive models to the official warehouse), through the official Merchants Manager invitation link to the station, you can also be in the South African blue ocean market share a cup of soup.

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📌 Scan the QR code below for more first-hand explanations of e-commerce in Africa!