South Africa’s largest privately owned retail team is getting ready to offer Kathu and surrounding areas the best store in the community when it opens a world-class Food Lover’s Market store at the Kathu Village Mall on 6 July 2023. 

With an array of fresh food and grocery offerings and a dazzling display of shopping theatre inside, it promises to be a premium shopping experience.

Olebogeng Motse spoke to Travis Coppin, CEO of Food Lover’s Market’s retail division, ahead of the opening. 

“We want to be the best destination for weekly groceries, meat, health needs and fresh foods. Times are tough, and I see it as a massive win if we can offer our customers amazing value and a unique one-stop shopping experience,” says Coppin.

The retailer has been relentlessly fostering outstanding supplier relationships, which means they can offer a wide range of quality products at fantastic prices - this includes a competitive grocery section in terms of range and price. 

Customers can now expect the same value on groceries as they have come to enjoy in other departments, such as fruit, veg and butchery. 

The core tenet of the business is to be the 'Best in Fresh', which means the Kathu store will most certainly boast world-class seasonal fruit & veg. The Food Lover's Market Kathu team will maintain constant stock rotation of its fresh produce to ensure freshness and quality. Customers can select their pre-cut fruit or veg or select from convenient pre-packs.

“In the same way that we encourage shoppers to select their fresh produce when going through the fruit and vegetable section, we invite them to ask our expert Blockman to advise them on premium cuts and interesting meal ideas - it’s part of the theatre of shopping at a Food Lover’s Market butchery,” explains Coppin. 

The gourmet butchery is dedicated to delivering a premium meat counter with the feel of a traditional butcher. The retailer has long since aimed to offer a meat space with an abundance of choice, backed by the quality products you would expect from a traditional local butcher, in the market-style environment of a theatre of food. 

FLM sources mainly from local suppliers and has excellent and longstanding relationships with farmers and producers as it looks to improve confidence in its supply chain and to offer shoppers a fantastic butchery experience. Over the last few years, the retailer has been fortunate to expand its butchery business through relationships with preferred suppliers such as Karan Beef, Deli Co, Linker Meats, Winelands Pork and Cavalier for meat and Freddy Hirsch, African Spice, Crown National and Exim for spices.

Other departments within this 2463 sqm space include anon-site bakery, a wine section, a fresh seafood department, and cheese and deli counters. Hot food offerings include Crispy Chicken, Bubs Fish & Chips and Pie O’My, while The Fresh Society, Love Health and Health &Happiness will appeal to the health-conscious shopper. The Grab & Go includes a Sushi counter and a Biltong Bar. A speedy checkout process is guaranteed, with 11 till points installed at the exit.

Adults and children alike will be delighted by the animatronics dotted around the store - such as a dancing banana at the entrance and a happy doughnut at the Doughnut Bar. Food Lover’s Market has transformed their traditional brick-and-mortar space into an emporium to delight the senses by employing various animatronics and digital screens to keep customers informed, entertained and engaged while shopping.

Says Coppin, “We’re passionate about offering an amazing shopping experience by offering incredible value, range and quality. Establishing a great relationship between our team members and customers is also a big part of that retail magic. As a result, significant thought has gone into the Kathu team, 95% of which has largely been recruited locally.” 

Logan Govender, an experienced retailer, will manage the store. Govender has experience working within the Food Lover’s Market group and previously managed a store in Gauteng. 

He will be supported by a team of 112 passionate team members to support him, with 19 of the team part of the gourmet Butchery section. 

During orientation and training, the new Food Lover’s Market team members have completed a Values and Customer Xperience workshop and undertaken training in Rustenburg, Johannesburg and Pretoria.

“The team goes through customer service training programmes to prioritise living the Food Lover’s Market values, the importance of customer service, and understanding all the product lines. Fortunately for us, it comes naturally to everyone we’ve hired,” says Coppin.

Food Lover’s Market will have some amazing specials to celebrate the opening. Coppin selected his favourite opening day specials:

•          Food Lover’s Market Canola Oil at 2f or R100

•          1 litre Food Lover’s Blended Seed& extra Virgin Olive Oil at 2 for R100

•          Karan Beef Rump Steak at R99.99 per kg

•          Sunlight Auto 2 kg or 1.5 litreSunlight Liquid at R59.99

•          1 lg Stork Country Spread at R37.99

•          Lamb Leg Roast at R159.99 per kg

The store is located at Shop 29, Kathu Village Mall. Corner R380 & Hendrick Van Eck Rd in Kathu and shoppers are encouraged to watch the local press or the Food Lover’s Market website for more details of opening specials.

About Food Lover’s Market

Food Lover’s Market has grown from its origins as a single Fruit & Veg City store in Access Park, Cape Town, 30 years ago to South Africa’s largest specialist fresh produce retailer and privately owned family business. Today, the Food Lover’s Market Group consists of 110 Food Lover’s Market stores in 7countries across Southern Africa - this includes six Food Lover’s Eateries. Food Lover’s Market prides itself on its quality fresh produce, its theatre of food experience with a distinctive market feel and its consistent value offerings for the consumer. The brand aims to create a good food neighbourhood by consistently being the best store in the community. Forming part of the Food Lover’s Market family, FVC International is the largest importer of fresh produce into South Africa and the fastest growing exporter, shipping more than7000 containers each year and exporting to more than 35 countries worldwide. It has its own logistics company in partnership with two of the largest producers in South Africa, which ensures that orders reach their destination in the shortest possible time. Other brands within the Food Lover’s Market Group include Freshstop - with over 330 convenience stores, 32 Diamond Discount Liquor and Market Liquors stores, and 230 Seattle Coffee Company outlets. The group has ten distribution centres, two meat packing facilities and five production facilities.

 More than a supermarket, we’re a market for food lover’s.