As Shoprite Group’s chief marketing officer Mike Middleton states, “SA is a great place to live” and that’s even if you’re not the sort of individual who would be paying much attention to the price of Moët & Chandon.
He says the cheeky comparative price ads he placed in newspapers in London and Sydney last week are a “fun and lighthearted way to drive the message” of South Africa’s greatness. So it seems a bit cynical and joyless to point out a few details that undermine the comparisons suggesting Checkers’ food prices are enticingly inexpensive.
But just in case some homesick South Africans checked out the comparative prices and decided it was time to return, they do need to be warned that the pay cut they might have to take could leave them no better off financially.
In 2014 SABMiller — when it was still South African “owned” — released fascinating comparative details about the cost of beer across the globe. The cost was not given in terms of any currency, but in hours of minimum-wage work.
The data analysis, which appears to have been generated by internet-based media/information operator Quartz, turned up some surprising information. The world’s most expensive beer — in terms of minimum-wage work — was in Georgia. Any Georgian wanting to buy 0.5l of draught would have to work 15.1 hours for it.
Beer-drinkers in Puerto Rico had the “cheapest” beer: 0.2 hours for 0.5l. South Africa featured among the “cheaper” countries. In 2014 a South African drinker needed to work 0.9 hours for a beer. For a Brit it would be half-an-hour and an Aussie just 20 minutes.
Sorry for taking Middleton’s fun out of it, but we should consider the minimum wages involved in the three countries to understand how cheap Checkers’ offering is for South Africans.
The minimum hourly wage in Australia is R243.54 (A$21.38); in the UK it’s R197.30 (£9.19) and in South Africa R23.19.
South Africans on minimum wage have to work much longer hours than consumers in London or Sydney to afford any of the items in Checkers’ ads. It’s frightening how much longer. For the Omo tabs an Australian would have to work only 0.89 hours against the 3.23 for a minimum-wage South African.
Coca-Cola is cheapest in Australia where someone on the minimum hourly wage would have to work only 0.17 hours to buy a bottle; in the UK 0.24 hours; and a South African an hour.
The butter costs 0.32 hours in Sydney, 0.43 hours in London and 2.59 hours in South Africa.
The rump steak costs 1.3 hours in Australia, 1.55 hours in London and 7.8 hours in South Africa.
What is particularly puzzling is that the South African grapes you can get in London for just 0.29 hours of work require 1.5 hours in South Africa.
And in case you’re on minimum wage and were wondering about the cost of French champagne, it seems to be cheapest in Australia at a mere 3.6 hours; in London it’s 4.25 hours; and in South Africa you’d have to work almost 24 hours to afford a bottle of Moët & Chandon.
Of course, you can tell by the products highlighted that Checkers’ ads aren’t targeting the lowest income groups in Sydney or London. But the comparative cost picture for South Africa doesn’t get much better looking at the middle class in each country.
Perhaps the inclusion of Moët & Chandon indicates it’s the top few percent that are being targeted, those extremely mobile high-skilled individuals who traverse the globe at the least encouragement.
But unless you’re in CEO territory, you’re likely to be getting considerably more pay in Australia and the UK than in South Africa and are therefore better able to afford the food prices in those countries than most South Africans can here. This makes appropriate the suggestion by Checkers that the London and Sydney Saffers get groceries delivered to their loved ones in South Africa.
The good news for CEOs is that they enjoy close to international levels of remuneration. The R48.42m Shoprite CEO Pieter Engelbrecht was awarded last year is not too far off what Waitrose, M&S and Sainsbury CEOs received and what unlisted Aldi is estimated to pay its country CEOs. The outliers are the well-paid CEOs of Tesco in the UK and Coles in Australia.
Checkers has started a conversation that needs to be continued.
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