Shoprite, light out and the new price regime

IKEJA, Lagos, Nigeria – Things have changed in Nigeria’s main shopping centre,  Shoprite. Ironically, the shopping complex which was established in Lagos over  five years ago currently boasts of at least 6 complexes in Lagos and has spread into other major cities in Nigeria.

Shoprite, a South African brand came to Nigeria at a time when supermarkets called the shots.  The attraction to Shoprite was not just the structural design, the cool ambience and the international feel you get once you step into the mall but the steady power supply and prices which come really cheap. 

But all that seems to have changed. Things seem to be fast deteriorating, the standby generating sets have started failing. The toilet facilities are no longer in the best of shape.  Low prices which used to be the major attraction is now a thing of the past. Things are now cheaper in that petty shop, even supermarkets near your home than you will find at Shoprite. 

Two Sundays ago, our reporter who was armed with vouchers visited Ikeja Shopping Mall, and moved into Shoprite to buy household stuff only to discover that things have changed. 

But since he is not buying with cash, he was  left with no choice but to make purchases. But if you have cash, there is no longer any need to go to Shoprite  if your mission is to get things at cheaper rates.

Besides, our reporter who visited with his wife and hundreds of other customers were  politely asked to leave and abandon shopping half way when the light went off and locked out for almost 45 minutes.

One other troubling development that customers need to watch out for at shoprite is  the deceptive nature of the prize tags.  

Unless you are very careful, you will end up spending more than intended. The price tags are for single items, not per pack as you may want to believe.  Besides, you don’t have to shop in a hurry, cross-check the items with the receipt otherwise you can get home and discover that you have paid more for less. 

Our reporter went through this experience when he got home only to discover that though he paid for 6 packs of toiletries, he came home with just five packs.  Our reporter’s wife called the phone numbers on the receipt to complain but nobody picked the calls.

So shop with your thinking cap on and learn to do window shopping in your area before you contemplate going to shoprite otherwise you will discover too late that you have spent more shopping at shoprite even before adding the cost of fuel.