Shareholder Reset For South Africa’s Biggest Duty-Free Retailer

Major sub-Saharan travel retailer operator, South Africa’s Big Five Duty Free, has added a new shareholder and also appointed a new CEO, signaling a possible shift in its future direction. The retailer’s main operations are at the airports of Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Durban.

The company—whose shareholder base includes German travel retailer Gebr. Heinemann; luxury distributor and retailer CAVI Brands; as well as a women-owned investment consortium including Zithezava and Rumbi Investments, which took a 28% stake a year ago—has now welcomed Maponya Investment Holdings (MIH).

Meanwhile, former Big Five general manager for the past eight years, Lloyd Mhlanga, has been promoted to CEO and is tasked with driving commercial performance and overseeing the next phase of the duty-free retailer’s expansion.

Maponya’s arrival follows the family’s investment in CAVI, with both entities now partnering at Big Five. At the time of last year’s Rumbi and Zithezava move, government-backed Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) ownership increased from 35% to 52%, and has increased further. MIH is said to have acquired “a significant equity stake” in Big Five, enough that CEO Elias Phatudi Maponya will assume the role of board chairman.

MIH was established in 2007 and is a diversified real estate, mining and energy, private equity, and gambling and gaming business that operates as a family-run business, some it has in common with Heinemann.

A long-term expansion goal

As a holding company, MIH has grown into a big private investment player managing over 4.81 billion South African rand ($27.9 million) in assets. The company prides itself on its entrepreneurial spirit and strategic partnerships and claims to have “a strong desire for regional rejuvenation” and a focus on long-term business development.

Heinemann said that MIH will also bring retail place-making to the table and guide strategic growth. Big Five’s new chairman commented: “With aligned South African capital and world-class partners, we are ready to take this experience to the next level, making our national airports feel unmistakably ours—and genuinely world-class.”

Specifically, Big Five Duty Free has set out five objectives:

• Expand and upgrade its retail footprint at major South African airports
• Strengthen partnerships with regional airport authorities and concession partners across sub-Saharan Africa
• Support South African SMEs, especially women-owned businesses
• Enhance the traveler experience through tailored product assortments and bespoke services
• Maintain a commitment to South Africa by building a transformation-driven travel retail business.

Heinemann looks more widely in Africa

With the changes, it appears that Heinemann’s position is now more operational and collaborative at Big Five. The travel retailer has been diversifying in other regions like India and the Middle East, but has a close eye on markets in Africa, where it has many years of experience, and has noted, for example, the growing traffic across borders for work, education, healthcare, as well as wildlife safaris and road trips.

Since 2023, the Hamburg-based company has built a strategic supply partnership with Brand House Duty Free, which has intentions of expanding its current three border shops as well as diplomatic operations throughout the African continent. Heinemann is supporting Brand House with its expertise in shop design, category management, sales planning, and staff training.

In total, Heinemann has a supply business spanning 35 African countries. Commenting earlier this year on the continent, CEO of Heinemann Middle East and Africa, Bernard Schlafstein, said: “We have already established a solid footprint for our distribution business to border shops in Africa and we see huge potential for further growth in this channel.”

Part of that potential will come from the significant increase in purchasing power expected for the continent’s middle class, which will also help Big Five Duty Free in the South African market. By 2050, Africa’s consumer expenditure could exceed $4 trillion, driven by a middle class that may represent over 40% of the continent’s population by 2060. This would make it one of the most dynamic consumer segments globally, outpacing many regions in relative growth.