Consumers spent like there was no tomorrow over Black Friday weekend, splurging on clothing, groceries, furniture, food and travel. Now retailers and banks expect the tills to keep on ringing loudly as South Africans stock up for Christmas.
One bank, Absa, which recorded R5.5bn in transactions over the Black Friday weekend, said spending had been lacklustre, which suggested the “hype” was wearing thin. Nedbank reported transactions using its cards hit a record R2.84bn over the weekend, while FNB said its clients tapped and swiped R3.4bn on the day, slightly higher than the R3.3bn it had forecast.
Total spending across these three banks and Standard Bank exceeded R30bn over the Black Friday weekend in 2024. This year’s total is expected to surpass that once consolidated spending figures are released.
Akshay Bhayroo, head of business development at FNB’s credit card division, said the largest single purchase by an individual on Black Friday was R729,000, while one commercial client recorded a total of R3.66m in overall spending. The highest total spend by a single retail client was R2.29m.
“The surge was driven by strong activity across both in-store and online channels, with digital payments continuing to gain momentum,” said Bhayroo.
Online, credit and digital transactions at Standard Bank private and personal banking surged during the Black Friday weekend, with one customer spending R864,000 on home furnishings. Capitec said one client spent R500,000 in a single transaction, while the most expensive total shopping spree by one person was R4.3m.
Standard Bank said it expected a further surge in spending over the festive period, driven by strong activity in retail, dining and travel.
“The recent interest rate cut is likely to boost disposable income, further stimulating demand and card transactions. Businesses are gearing up for a busy period as shoppers take advantage of improved affordability and holiday promotions,” the bank said.
Either the hype around Black Friday has faded, or consumers have stopped believing the narrative ... The traditional Black Friday model may be losing relevance in Africa’s retail landscape
— Absa spokesperson
The Reserve Bank, citing the stronger rand and an easing of inflation, gave consumers some respite in November by cutting the repo rate by 25 basis points. Interest rates have dropped a cumulative 1.5 percentage points in this easing cycle.
Discovery Bank said lower inflation, coupled with the recent interest rate cuts after two years of tighter monetary policy, is starting to lift pressure on household finances. “These factors suggest that consumers are gradually feeling more confident, and we expect this positive momentum to carry through into the Christmas shopping season,“ it said.
Absa said the Black Friday performance was lacklustre due to caution by consumers. Consumers are still under “significant” strain, despite the interest rate cut.
“Even historically strong triggers — such as payday alignment — failed to deliver meaningful uplift during Black Friday 2025 ... The reality is clear: either the hype around Black Friday has faded, or consumers have stopped believing the narrative. Both may be true, and both point to the same conclusion — the traditional Black Friday model may be losing relevance in Africa’s retail landscape,” the spokesperson said.
“We haven’t seen a large increase in Black Friday transaction values, and many of the transaction increases are largely inflationary this year. With the majority of spend still going to consumables such as food and groceries, we believe customers are still using discounts to save money and make their hard-earned rands go further.”
The bank said “anything can happen [in December] — consumer sentiment and confidence will play a critical role in shaping outcomes”.
The Absa spokesperson said retailers faced pressure to deliver deep discounts in a challenging economic environment, risking thinner margins. Financially constrained shoppers were increasingly unwilling to pay full price, opting instead to purchase only when their needs aligned with promotional offers.
Absa said card spending rose 11% year on year on Cyber Monday, but on Black Friday itself spending was up just 1.4%.
Since Black Friday became a thing in South Africa about 10 years ago, traditional December holiday spending has been starting earlier.
Retailers that did best over the Black Friday weekend included Shoprite, for essentials and groceries, while the Takealot e-commerce platform led the way for online shoppers. KFC took the top spot for takeaways.
Shoprite said popular purchases included such everyday essentials and staples as chicken, rice, beans, pasta, cooking oil, cheese, coffee and chocolate. “At the same time, we saw a growing appetite for bigger ticket items, particularly through [online delivery service] Checkers Sixty60.”
The retailer said seasonal categories for gifting, décor and entertaining essentials are also selling fast. Toys were flying off the shelves and it had to increase stock to meet the demand — which was also reflected in orders through Checkers Sixty60.
Spar spokesperson Mpudi Maubane said customers focused on:
- bulk essentials (chicken, maize meal, cooking oil, sugar);
- long-life pantry items (pasta, canned goods, flour, toiletries, cleaning products); and
- combo deals and multipacks “offering maximum value”; while
- snacks and beverages also sold well as shoppers prepared for the festive period.
“We also saw significant activity from stokvel groups, who used Black Friday to secure bulk savings for the festive and January period,” she said.
Maubane said Black Friday sales showed “steady year-on-year growth, supported by stronger value messaging, early promotion visibility, and greater consumer confidence”. Consumers remain “firmly value-conscious ... [They are] actively looking for savings, bulk deals, and long-life pantry items to stretch budgets into January.”
Standard Bank said spending usually ramps up in the week before Christmas, as consumers prepare at the last minute for travel, family gatherings and year-end celebrations. It said major spending is expected on:
- groceries;
- clothing and footwear; and
- takeaway or restaurant meals; while
- e-commerce platforms and travel-related businesses such as hotels, airlines and car rental companies are expected to share in the spending boom.
Nedbank said the record R2.84bn spent by clients over the Black Friday weekend was up 4.5% year on year. It said its clients spent R1.13bn on Black Friday itself, an increase of 5%.
“As Black Friday continues to grow in popularity in South Africa, the 2025 figures point to a maturing South African consumer market with people being more purposeful, strategic and targeted with their purchases, and exercising greater patience in waiting for exactly the deals they want,” said Nedbank.
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