More bad news for beleaguered retailer Pick n Pay as Discovery Vitality chooses to dump the company and partner with Checkers. Picture: Simphiwe Mbokazi / Independent Newspapers
Consumers who use the Discovery Vitality card to get points and rewards at Pick n Pay will have to move over to Checkers from September 2024 when it comes to the HealthyFood benefit.
The insurance company announced that it will no longer partner with Pick n Pay and has decided to partner with Checkers and Checkers Sixty60 from September 1, 2024.
Discovery said that consumers will continue to earn rewards on items purchased at Pick n Pay and Pick n Pay ASAP until August 31, 2024 and noted that those rewards will be paid to the consumer in September.
The company said that Woolworths and Woolies Dash will remain as a partner with Discovery for the HealthyFood benefit.
“The new HealthyFood benefit will enable you to get rewarded at Checkers and Woolworths for in-store purchases, Checkers Sixty60 and Woolworths online, and the Woolies app and Woolies Dash for online shopping,” Discovery said.
“These HealthyFood rewards will be paid in Discovery Miles, our rewards currency that is more valuable than cash. Watch out for communication in September with more information. You don’t need to do anything right now.”
Consumers should note that they can also still spend their Discovery Miles at Pick n Pay by choosing them as a reward option in the Vitality Mall.
Pick n Pay’s CEO, Sean Summers said in May that the company has embarked on a new strategy to restore its core Pick n Pay supermarket business to profit after its R3.2 billion taxed loss for the year to February 25, 2024.
Summers said that the company plans for a R4 billion rights issue and the listing of Boxer in November is in full swing.
The CEO acknowledged that Pick n Pay’s latest results were a disappointment.
He said it was made clear upon his re-appointment in December that the group was under extreme duress after years of steady decline in the core business.
Parts of the strategy had already been implemented. For the first 10 weeks of the 2024 year, there had been positive like-for-like growth by Pick n Pay, alongside a consistently strong performance from Boxer, he said.
IOL Business has reached out to Pick n Pay to examine how they will address the impact of Discovery’s decision and what impact it will have on consumers and its recovery plan.
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