The Voice (Francistown)
Innocent Tshukudu
6 May 2008
The Choppies chain of super markets expanded their services by opening a new branch in Bobonong village last Friday.
The official opening had been scheduled to start at 2.30pm but anxious customers who could not wait for the time thronged the store before 2pm, a clear indication of the demand for the supermarket in the area.
The customers' wishes for a new shopping experience were granted as the doors were finally officially opened by area MP Shaw Kgathi.
"We've been waiting for this kind of development in a very long time. I've always had to rely on my son who lives in Selebi-Phikwe to buy groceries and put them on a bus for me. It wasn't safe because most of the time I never received all the goods. Now I won't even bother because I'll get everything I want by simply walking to Choppies," said a 74-year-old customer, Makaba Moreti.
Another happy customer was Priscilla Majaha. "I work for the government and going to Phikwe to buy groceries during the week is not easy because we knock off at 4.30pm," she said.
The chain store's director of Public Relations, Ben Stegling, explained that this was their 45th retail store. He said ever since the Choppies chain of supermarkets made their mark four years ago, "We've come to respond to the various domestic needs of our people. We needed to try and assist the people of Bobonong and satellite villages who buy from Phikwe. Part of the motive is to empower them and make life easier in terms of certain commodities. I believe our coming to Bobonong will also reduce the number of road accidents as the number of people who travel to towns to access supermarkets will be reduced."
Stegling added that "residents will also have a sense of pride and realize that they don't necessarily have to migrate to urban areas to survive. We have also contributed to the Bobonong community by creating employment for sixty people."
Steglin said the expansion was coming to an end as the Choppies Group of Companies intended to give individual business people a chance to operate franchises. "We intend to reduce the monopoly and besides, we shall be venturing into other scopes of business such as opening Choppies hardware stores and furniture shops.
He noted that Choppies was also a retail business mentor. "Society needs someone with a formula that caters for the man on the street while keeping the highest business standards."
The colourful official opening continued into the afternoon as the shopping spree went on amid entertainment by kwasa-kwasa star Franco.
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