Amazon South Africa celebrates Heritage Month with Shop Mzansi pop-up stores
4 min read
Amazon South Africa has announced the launch of its Shop Mzansi Heritage Month celebration featuring pop-up stores in Johannesburg and Cape Town. Launched shortly after the Amazon.co.za store, Shop Mzansi, a dedicated storefront for local products, reinforces Amazon’s commitment to supporting South African small businesses.
The immersive pop-up experiences showcase a curated selection of locally made products from South African entrepreneurs, allowing customers to engage directly with sellers, experience products first-hand, and learn the stories behind these homegrown businesses.
“Heritage Month provides the perfect opportunity to celebrate the incredible creativity, craftsmanship, and entrepreneurial spirit of South African entrepreneurs,” said Robert Koen, Managing Director for Amazon Sub-Saharan Africa. “Through our Shop Mzansi storefront and these pop-up stores, we’re creating meaningful connections between local businesses and customers, while demonstrating our commitment to being a positive force in South Africa and fostering growth among small businesses.”
The pop-up stores will be hosted at premier shopping destinations in South Africa’s major metropolitan areas:
· Johannesburg: Mall of Africa – 18 to 21 September
· Cape Town: Tygervalley Centre – 24 to 28 September
Each pop-up store will feature ten selected Shop Mzansi sellers offering South African products across various categories. The experiential spaces will include interactive product demonstrations, seller storytelling opportunities, and promotional elements including app download incentives and special offers for first-time Amazon customers.
“We’re excited to bring the Shop Mzansi experience to life in these physical spaces,” said Mpho Modise, Head of Small Business for Amazon South Africa. “While we’re proud of our digital storefront, these pop-ups create an opportunity for customers to meet the people behind the products and develop deeper connections with local businesses.”
Xanthe Havenga, owner and director of luxury leather goods brand, Minx Leather and Shop Mzansi seller, added, “As a small business owner, having both an online presence through Amazon and these in-person opportunities to showcase our products is invaluable. Minx Leather has achieved an astounding 175% year-over-year growth since launching on Amazon in June 2024. In just over a year, we have grown our business from a local market favourite to serving customers from around the world.”
Amazon empowers local sellers with a suite of tools and support designed to streamline business growth at every stage. From a dashboard that provides a centralised command centre for inventory management, order processing, and performance analytics, to Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA) that handles storage, packing, shipping, and customer service so sellers can focus on scaling their business, Amazon is committed to making it easy for businesses of all sizes to succeed.
Commenting on their success, Lanie van Schalkwyk, director at Nettari and Instabean, said, “Since our May 2025 launch on Amazon and subsequent adoption of FBA two months later, Nettari-Instabean has achieved a steady 166% month-on-month growth. Our growth is testament to the partnership with Amazon where we can leverage their infrastructure to scale our operations while we can focus on product innovation and quality standards.”
The pop-up stores form part of a broader Heritage Month campaign that includes media partnerships, seller profiles, and influencer collaborations designed to amplify awareness of South African products available through Amazon.
Customers unable to attend the pop-up events can explore the full range of local products by visiting the Shop Mzansi storefront on Amazon.co.za/shopmzansi or through the Amazon app. Amazon is hosting its Big Smile Sale: Heritage Day Edition from 19 – 30 September where customers can get amazing deals from Shop Mzansi sellers and on other local products and international favourites.
