In December, French retail giant Carrefour announced it would enter Ghana through a franchise partnership with Brands For All, taking over seven former Shoprite hypermarkets by April 2026. The move adds to existing partnerships in Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt and a growing list of sub-Saharan countries.
Most outlets operate under master-franchise deals with regional conglomerates rather than direct French ownership. The strategy allows rapid scaling with limited risk, placing the Carrefour logo at the entrance of malls from Casablanca to Abidjan.
Supporters describe this as modernisation. Critics see a slow squeeze on traditional traders.
A Brand that Travels Faster than Wages
For many urban middle-class households, a Carrefour hypermarket represents predictable prices, refrigeration, loyalty programmes and imported products that local stalls rarely stock. Expats and wealthier locals appreciate the familiarity and perceived food safety standards.
But those aisles sit at a price point far from the average income in many African cities. A 2024 survey by consumer groups in Morocco and Côte d’Ivoire found that branded supermarket baskets often cost significantly more than similar goods in neighbourhood markets, even during promotions.
That gap risks turning big-box retail into a symbol of status rather than a universal service. The most visible “modern” spaces cater mainly to a narrow slice of society, reinforcing existing economic divides.
Pressure on the Stall
Traditional markets still dominate food supply in much of Africa. Informal vendors, street hawkers and small family shops provide flexible credit and local knowledge that large chains cannot easily replicate.
Studies of retail change in North and West Africa show a mixed picture. In some cities, supermarkets push stallholders to specialise in fresher produce and niche products. In others, they undercut nearby shops on packaged goods until local businesses close.
Master-franchise models add another layer. Local conglomerates gain access to a powerful brand and supply chain. Yet decision-making often shifts away from small producers towards corporate buyers who prefer large, standardised orders.
For small farmers, entering those supply chains can be almost impossible without intermediaries.
Retail as Cultural Export
Carrefour’s African expansion is not separate from global patterns; it is an export of a food culture that prizes convenience, branding and centralised logistics. In North African cities with deep market traditions, the contrast is visible.
A stroll can move from tiled fish stalls and spice mounds to polished supermarkets where fruit arrives in plastic trays. Some North African governments actively welcome this model, seeing it as a way to formalise parts of the informal economy and collect more tax revenue.
Others worry about foreign brands displacing local chains and accelerating dietary shifts towards ultra-processed foods. For consumers elsewhere, this is a reminder that their weekly shop does not exist in isolation.
The same companies that organise shelves in Lyon and Lille also reshape how people buy rice and tomatoes in Lagos and Tunis.
Choosing Survival
Carrefour’s franchise push will not end the era of African markets, but it will shape which vendors manage to adapt and which are left outside the fluorescent light. Zoning rules can prevent hypermarkets from clustering next to fragile street markets.
Procurement policies can favour contracts with local farmers and co-operatives rather than only large distributors. Some cities in North Africa and the Middle East have experimented with hybrid spaces where modern retail sits alongside protected market halls, rather than replacing them outright.
Those efforts recognise that convenience has value, but so does the social fabric woven through small stalls and familiar faces. For now, shoppers still vote with their feet, moving amongst crates of tomatoes on the pavement and polished aisles a few streets away.
What they choose, and what governments allow, will decide if the continent’s food future belongs only to global chains, or to a negotiated coexistence in which the supermarket grows without swallowing the street.
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