Walmart takes over Game stores — and the numbers are telling

Johannesburg – Walmart’s South African expansion is beginning to reshape the retail footprint of its subsidiary Massmart, with the US retailer’s new stores outperforming the Game outlets they replaced.

According to BusinessTech, Walmart’s store at East Point Shopping Centre in Boksburg has outperformed the former Game store at the site since opening in February. The mall’s owner, SA Corporate Real Estate, said Walmart had achieved a 28.7% higher trading density than Game during its first four months.

“Walmart commenced trading at East Point in March 2026 and has already outperformed the Game store it replaced,” SA Corporate Real Estate said.

The Boksburg outlet is Walmart’s third branded store in South Africa, following its launches at Clearwater Mall and Fourways Mall in Johannesburg in November 2025. All three occupy sites previously used by Game. Massmart said the Boksburg opening was part of an “accelerated rollout”, with 21 additional stores proposed for Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape.

Strategy of using existing sites 

However, the expansion appears to have slowed. MyBroadband reported in July that Walmart’s South African footprint remained at three stores, despite the earlier expansion plans. Massmart said at the time that it had no further information on upcoming launches.

The shift is happening alongside a contraction in Game’s footprint.

Moneyweb reported in March that Game could shrink to fewer than 80 stores, with many outlets in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape potentially being converted to Walmart stores.

MyBroadband previously reported that Massmart had closed at least 13 Game stores since late 2022, while Walmart’s first two South African stores opened at former Game locations. Massmart said its strategy of using existing sites was “mostly motivated by our objective to move at speed”.

The strategy reflects Walmart’s attempt to differentiate its South African stores through its “Every Day Low Prices” model. The Walmart format combines groceries, fresh and frozen food with general merchandise, creating a retail proposition closer to a hypermarket than the traditional Game model.

The strong performance at East Point has also benefited the shopping centre, with SA Corporate Real Estate saying Walmart’s arrival created opportunities to improve its tenant mix, including adding “an upmarket coffee offering, additional children’s entertainment and complementary athleisure brands”.

For now, the contrasting performance of Walmart and Game points to a significant change in Massmart’s South African retail strategy, although the pace and ultimate scale of Walmart’s planned expansion remain uncertain.