An exploratory study into sustainability strategies adopted by Spaza Shops in the face of challenges

Abstract

This study was carried out to determine sustainability strategies used by the spaza shops in the townships of Diepsloot, Cosmo City, and Alexandra. The spaza shop market is saturated and most spaza shops fail because of external and internal challenges. A fight for survival is paramount for such businesses and there is a great need for effective sustainable strategies. With very few studies on the success stories of these informal retailers, it is unclear how spaza businesses remain viable in the face of obstacles caused by both internal and external factors. Other studies have examined the sustainability issues affecting spaza retailers, but the goal of this study is to discover the strategies they use to stand out in a sector that is already saturated with competitors. This study was qualitative and exploratory in nature. To get more insightful data, spaza shops that have been operating for more than two years were chosen using a purposive sampling technique. Thirteen spaza shop operators participated in semi-structured interviews to gather information. The findings highlight the following strategies as crucial to the sustainability of the spaza shops: capitalising on business resources: marketing stratagems; selling selected products; having a competitive advantage; and partnerships with other businesses. The neighborhood crime watch associations that the business community established have been instrumental in reducing crime in the townships, which has allowed operators of spaza stores to increase operating hours. The spaza shops reported a reduction in loss of resources due to burglary and theft. The researcher recommends that business management and entrepreneurial support be acquired by spaza shop operators, the government should outsource skills development training for these retailers, and more partnership initiatives should be encouraged to promote sustainability.