Spaza shops are defined as small retail enterprises operating from a residential stand or home and engaged in the trading of consumer goods.

It is estimated that spaza retailers captured approximately 2,7% of South Africa's retail trade, amounting to R7,4 billion in 2000.

For 2001, formal retail trade was expected to be about R185 billion, with spaza retailers generating an additional R5 billion.

The turnover of spaza retailers is larger than the combined turnover of the branded superettes that include chains such as Seven Eleven, Rite Value and Sentra.

On average start-up investment of spaza shops amounted to R4 058, mainly financed by private savings or loans from relatives or friends.

There are about 100 000 spaza, each employing between two and three people. That means this sector of the South African economy could be providing between 230 000 to 290 000 jobs, supporting more than a million people.

There are more than 40 000 spazas in Gauteng alone.

The five most important products traded by spazas are soft drinks, cigarettes, paraffin/candles, maize meal and alcoholic beverages.

The buyer of these products in many cases is a child because parents leave early for work and have no time during the week for shopping. This has big implications for product advertising.

There is a growing awareness of the importance of the spaza retailer as a marketing channel among manufacturers and producers. More than one fifth of spazas confirmed that products such as soft drinks and dairy and bakery products are delivered to their shops.

Coca Cola and SABMiller are some of the very few companies doing deliveries to spaza shops.

Many spazas have cash constraints. So companies have to be able to deliver products in small batches frequently.