The mid‐July 2021 civil unrest in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) and Gauteng struck at the heart of South Africa’s retail sector. The disruption didn’t just hit their businesses across the region; it tore into the guts of one of the biggest retail businesses in the country: Massmart’s supply chain.
Massmart, the owner of Game, Makro, Builders Warehouse, and other chains, was heavily affected. The retail giant lost stores, trucks, and warehouses in the wave of looting. However, the supply chain was able to make the most of the situation and survive when others couldn’t.
Considering the delicate nature of African politics, businesses and supply chains can no longer afford to see civil and political unrest as a distant problem. It will happen again somewhere. How you respond will decide if your company stands or breaks.
This is the story of what Massmart faced, how they responded, and what must now change in African supply chains.
What Happened: The Unrest That Shook Logistics
Political tension and widespread economic pain sparked South Africa’s 2021 unrest. Riots quickly spread through KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, two provinces with major retail and logistics arteries. Businesses were burned, trucks hijacked, and goods looted.
Massmart lost 41 stores, with two major distribution centres (DCs) in Durban, Riverhorse and Cato Ridge, ransacked or destroyed. Key roads like the N3 were blocked, and drivers abandoned shipments.
For two weeks, the movement of food and essentials into parts of KwaZulu-Natal froze. As you can imagine, sales plummeted. Losses hit nearly R650 million, even after insurance. But the biggest damage? The trust of customers and the collapse of normal supply operations.
This was no short glitch but a deep hit to supply chain continuity.
Read more: Unilever Nigeria’s local sourcing strategy that beat forex challenges.
The Supply Chain Disruption Massmart Faced
Massmart’s supply chain was on the verge of collapse, and it wasn’t because of inadequate planning. The company didn’t just lose inventory; it lost the physical veins that fed stores. Its internal logistics plans were thoroughly tested.
- Distribution Collapse: Riverhorse, a critical hub for moving goods into KwaZulu-Natal, was looted and burned.
- Transport Blockage: Trucks couldn’t move. Highways were unsafe or blocked, and some trucks were torched.
- Inventory Wipeout: Stores were emptied. Food and essentials were out of stock across large areas, and customers were queuing outside shuttered stores.
- Supplier Gaps: Factories in riot zones halted operations. Goods couldn’t move from the port to the warehouse to the shelf.
This wasn’t a typical supply chain disruption that could be solved with better forecasts or tech. It was a raw, real-world blow to physical operations.
What Massmart’s Supply Chain Did To Fight Back
Despite the overwhelming situation, Massmart’s supply chain wouldn’t sit idle. The company moved fast. It acted on plans already in place. And it pulled support from Walmart, its global parent.
Here’s what they did — and why it mattered.
1. Shifted Distribution
Massmart’s supply chain rerouted goods from other provinces. The company’s network had built-in redundancy, so loads meant for Riverhorse were redirected to other DCs in Gauteng.
This move wasn’t smooth. But it kept some supply flowing into stores that hadn’t been looted.
2. Launched Emergency Aid Runs
With food shelves empty, Massmart sent Builders Warehouse trucks into KZN packed with groceries. These weren’t just deliveries — they were lifelines. In the middle of the crisis, Massmart helped communities while stress-testing their rebuilt supply lines.
3. Rebuilt Digital Channels
The company pushed customers to online platforms. It expanded home delivery, in-store pickup, and rolled out offerings through Vodacom’s Vodapay app.
This worked because the digital store stayed open where physical stores were shut or unsafe, giving customers access to necessary products.
4. Fast-tracked New Infrastructure
The company had already been building a new distribution center in KZN. However, when Riverhorse was destroyed, this project was moved into overdrive. Massmart’s supply chain used the crisis to replace broken infrastructure with smarter, newer capacity.
5. Protected Its People
No jobs were lost, and staff from closed stores were redeployed across the network. Safety became a top concern, not sales. That trust bought long-term loyalty from teams who saw the company stand by them when things were bad.
6. Secured Financial Lifelines
Walmart stepped in with a R4 billion facility, converting part of it into a permanent loan. Massmart also pushed for insurance payouts. By late 2021, it had received an interim R500 million from Sasria, with more pending. This funding kept trucks running and shelves refilled.
7. Kept Customers Spending
With peak shopping season coming, Massmart stretched its Black Friday campaign across an entire month, called “Black November.” This kept cash flowing in, even when some stores stayed shut.
Read more: How Kellogg’s supply chain navigated the 2021 workers’ strike.
The Outcome: Recovery, Not Collapse
Did Massmart’s supply chain collapse? No. It bent, but it didn’t break. Stores reopened. 14 in KZN by year-end, and more the next quarter. A few, like Game West Street, remained shut longer due to severe damage.
Sales bounced back. In the last 3 quarters of 2021, comparable store sales grew 2.9%. E-commerce exploded, with orders up over 100%. By 2022, online sales were rising 50% year-on-year. Customers returned, employees stayed, and supply moved.
Massmart didn’t just survive the looting. It rebuilt better
Lessons from How Massmart’s Supply Chain Handled Civil Unrest
Supply chain teams across Africa should treat this story twofold: as a warning, and as a model. These aren’t distant events. They are local, personal, and business-ending unless prepared for.
Here are the core lessons every logistics leader must apply now.
1. Build Redundancy Into Your Distribution Network
Massmart’s supply chain did not rely on a single distribution centre. That’s why it could reroute when Riverhorse fell. Always design networks so one node’s loss won’t freeze the flow. Real-world takeaway: If your supply chain has one warehouse feeding three regions, you’re not ready.
2. Have Backup Transport Plans Ready
Transport isn’t just about roads. It’s about alternatives like pre-arranged trucking partners, cross-docking sites, and safe rest stops. Having all of this in place ensured that Massmart’s supply chain could move goods through less-hit areas. Others couldn’t move at all.
3. Go Digital Before It’s Too Late
The world may look the same on the surface, but technology has forced it to change. Online shopping wasn’t just a sideline for Massmart. It enabled it to become the only storefront in riot zones. The company leveraged platforms like Vodapay to fill the gap when stores fell.
Real-world takeaway: If your online store isn’t fully operational, chances are your supply chain’s recovery will stall when the crisis hits.
4. Don’t Wait to Help. Act Immediately
Sending trucks with food wasn’t just about goodwill. It showed presence. Customers saw a brand that didn’t run. In Africa, logistics isn’t just a technical job. It’s a trust job.
5. Protect Staff First
Massmart didn’t cut jobs. It secured stores, reallocated staff, and protected teams. Those same teams helped rebuild faster. People in your supply chain operations aren’t cargo. Treat them as partners, and they’ll pull your chain through hell.
Read more: How Pep Stores’ supply chain built a cost-optimized operation.
How African Supply Chains Can Apply These Lessons
Most companies and their supply chains won’t get a warning. Civil unrest doesn’t schedule itself. And in all likelihood, there may not be an announcement for the next coup before it happens. The point is that African supply chains must stay ready. Prepare before the crisis hits.
Build flexible networks, stock locally, not just centrally, train your team for disaster, move your inventory strategy from “just in time” to just in case. You don’t need Walmart’s billions to do this. You need smarter planning.
Supply chain disruption in Africa is real, and the Massmart looting in 2021 was not unique. However, the lessons are urgent. Massmart has proven that supply chain operations can recover only if designed from the beginning to respond, not just operate.
The next storm will hit somewhere. Your job is to make sure your business keeps moving when it does.
Obinabo Tochukwu Tabansi is a supply chain digital writer & ghostwriter helping professionals and business owners across Africa explore various strategies that work and learn from the success and failures of various supply chains across the globe. He also ghostwrites social content for logistics & supply chain businesses
