The Numbers
The NumbersYour competition for dinner is a supermarket
Checkers Sixty60 turned over R11.9bn in six months from 875 stores. It is not beating you on food. It is winning the decision that used to end with somebody ordering from you.
The NumbersThe inflation number everyone quotes is not the one that moves your P&L
Headline CPI hit 5.0% in June, a two-year high, and every operator read that as bad news. Food inflation was 1.6%. Transport was 12.7%. If you budget off the headline you are budgeting off somebody else's basket.
The NumbersThe R70 Big Mac: how beef repriced South African fast food
A foot-and-mouth outbreak became 30% beef inflation, which became a R70.90 Big Mac, which is quietly moving customers from burgers to chicken. The whole chain, in one story.
The NumbersThe summer 2026/27 menu: what's coming, and is matcha still on trend?
Summer menus get planned now, not in November. What the global signal says is heading for SA counters, plus the honest answer on the green stuff.
The NumbersThe Commission comes to franchising
South Africa's first-ever market inquiry into the franchise sector is about to begin: 18 months of formal scrutiny, with fast food a priority. What it covers, and what operators should do now.
The NumbersThe store is getting smaller, and the maths is getting better
Micro-format outlets are dominating this quarter's openings. Lower capex, faster payback, and a different question to ask before you sign.
The NumbersIs Neapolitan still the die-hard's favourite pizza?
The wood-fired, leopard-spotted, 90-second Neapolitan owned the last decade of pizza credibility. The die-hards still bow to it. But the growth has moved somewhere else.
The NumbersWhat South Africa started ordering in 2026
Tacos up 152%, pork up 120%, bagels up 841% off a small base. The menu is moving faster than most franchise agreements allow operators to move with it.
