A highly-influential new segment of South African e-commerce consumers − dubbed “super-duper shoppers” − is reshaping the country’s digital retail landscape.
These high-income, tech-savvy individuals are early adopters of the latest online shopping tools and platforms, often setting trends that influence the buying habits of others.
These insights come from the seventh edition of the South African Customer Experience Report 2025, released yesterday.
Authored by Rogerwilco CEO Charlie Stewart, ovatoyou’s Amanda Reekie and customer experience (CX) consultant Julia Ahlfeldt, the report examines the impact of CX on brands and businesses, drawing on feedback from 2 000 consumers and more than 50 business executives.
According to the report: “They [super-duper shoppers] may represent a small portion of the population, but they account for an outsized share of spend and set the bar for customer experience expectations.”
Their behaviours, it notes, offer valuable guidance for businesses seeking to improve CX strategies and tailor offerings for diverse consumer groups.
“Super-duper shoppers are the power users of the internet, using online shopping for everything from daily necessities to high-ticket items. They have fully integrated e-commerce into their lifestyles, relying on it not just for convenience but as a core part of their consumption habits,” the report says.
Social media impact
For Jane Walters, head of customer experience at OneDayOnly, the rise of the “always-on” shopper shows that customers want both convenience and connection.
“It’s up to e-commerce stores to deliver both – while we’ve always tried to create a sense of urgency and excitement, the expectations of these (super-duper) shoppers pushes us to level up on personalisation and relevance,” she says.
The report highlights that this group is also highly-influential on social media, with customer reviews often shared on Meta (55%), Instagram (20%) and TikTok (35%).
This influence can work both ways – super-duper shoppers can boost a brand’s reputation or damage it, with 46% admitting to sharing negative experiences with friends, family, or online audiences.
“It is easier to both disappoint and delight with humans in the mix,” says Reekie. “Delightful experiences happen at physical locations (21%), during delivery and pickup (15%) and (14%) interacting with a customer service agent (not face-to-face)… Similarly, the poor experiences happen at physical locations (20%), during delivery (13%) and while interacting with call centre agents (20%). It is humans that have the power to make or break your brand at key moments. Ignore this at your peril.”
The report finds that super-duper shoppers expect the highest levels of service and convenience, seeking fast, frictionless experiences where past shopping data is used to deliver personalised recommendations.
While many receive this online, it is less certain whether physical retail meets these expectations outside of top omnichannel retailers. Reekie cautions that as technology makes experiences smoother, it can also make them less memorable.
“That’s why stores, branches and even call centres play a massive role in giving people something real to connect with and in helping brands to be memorable and stick.”
Convenience remains key
The report also reveals that not all consumers fall into the high-spending, always-online category. About 34% of respondents are occasional online shoppers – those whose most recent purchase was between three and 12 months ago – typically earning less than R10 000 a month.
For them, convenience remains key, and the report urges businesses to minimise friction to create simple, efficient shopping journeys.
The findings also reveal that while consumers use digital channels and tools such as e-commerce sites, social media, AI search and large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT to research and purchase, the tactile and instant nature of physical retail remains critical, with 55% valuing the ability to touch, fit and buy products in-store.
As a result, brands globally are investing in flagship store experiences to enhance layouts, boost fulfilment and foster human connection.
“While 2025 saw the mass adoption of AI-powered tools and LLMs across most types of businesses and sectors to improve processes and operations, while speeding-up manual tasks, it paradoxically is also the ‘year of the human’ as consumers actively seek more in-person interaction and support in response to the digital deluge from brands they buy from,” comments Stewart.
Despite e-commerce’s growth, the report points to a revival of physical retail, albeit in a modernised role.
“The good old traditional shop is here to stay,” says Reekie. “Although it’s been tweaked to align with current times, the role of the butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker… is still relevant. Consumers are choosing to physically go to a store to purchase specific items, learn about products or get a real feel for goods they like. While they may not always buy in-store and instead do so later online, the role of a branded physical retail space is clear.”
Digital disconnect
When businesses and brands invest in improving customer empathy and fostering genuine, real-world connections, this year’s report shows a clear outcome – these brands signal to customers that their wants and needs are understood, and that they are truly being heard.
Against this backdrop, the report underscores that a consistent, intentional effort to ensure consumers feel understood, valued for their loyalty, and connected to real people who can address their individual needs at various points in an increasingly complex customer journey, is no longer optional but essential for business success.
“There has been an over-emphasis on digital adoption among brands and businesses in recent years, largely undertaken to radically cut costs or reduce headcount among staff whose role can be automated,” says Ahlfeldt.
“The downside of this shift to digital, however, has created a divide among customers who have lost the human connection with the brands they buy from. As a case in point, 93% of consumers surveyed said that it was very important for organisations to understand their needs and emotions. Only 55% of businesses said the same. Clearly there is a disconnect and I fear that brands are blindly marching towards a point of no return.”
By neglecting this human element, the report warns, brands risk alienating not only vulnerable customers who crave understanding during difficult times but also high-value segments that increasingly expect empathy to be built into the overall experience – whether online, in-store, or through service channels.
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