Edgars was established by Morris and Eli Ross and is part of the Edcon group, which includes additional stores such asBoardmans, Red Square, and CNA. The first Edgars store was opened in Johannesburg, in 1928, but the store was moved to Cape Town seven years later.
By 1960, they had 135 stores, and just five years later, their stores more than doubled, with 300 stores, in cities such as Emalahleni, Mbombela, Cape Town, Johannesburg, East London and Welkom. They continued to open stores across South Africa, which included a massive 10 000 square meter store and distribution centre in Johannesburg, in 1974. In 1982, South African Breweries (SAB) gained control of the company, which led to greater expansion and more profits. But in the 1990s, they suffered a great amount of profit loss, causing SAB to sell their shares and leave the company. In an effort to save the company from going under, they hired American Steve Ross, which renamed the company to Edgars Consolidated Stores Ltd., and listed it on the JSE.
Edgars South Africa was the country’s first store to make use of a mail order catalogue, they were the first cosmetic store in South Africa, and they were also the first store to offer national and international clothing, together with cosmetics and accessories. The Edcon group was also the first to use barcodes in their retail stores, making the checkout process easier and more efficient for customers. In 2019, they opened their first ‘open concept’ store in Fourways, Johannesburg, to align themselves with international trends. The store features a coffee shop (Mugg & Bean), together with 8 000 square meters of clothing, beauty, and homeware. They also launched Edgars online, which meant customers can conveniently shop online, and have their purchases delivered to a store of their choice.
Edgars South Africa falls under the Miscellaneous category along with other stores such as AliExpress, AutoZone, Babies R Us, Baby City, Crazy Store, PEP Stores, Sterns, Toys R Us and Tupperware. Their trading hours are dependent on which shopping centre they are located in, but most stores are open from 9h00 to 19h00 from Monday to Saturday and 9h00 to 17h00 on Sundays.
You can read more about Edgars online by visiting their website edgars.co.za.