Pinetown, KZN, SA – Black Friday “wasn’t as powerful as expected”, Nilen Vanmali of American Outfitters said on Saturday. “For so many retailers, it’s now Black November,” he said. “We marked down all stock 10%, but only for the last 3 days of November. That worked well in the past, but not as well this year.”

He said the fact that the weekend fell 3 days after most people’s paydays also affected sales “because they had that time to spend on other things”.

He said he expected a slow start to December, followed by a last-minute rush. “If you have the stock, you’ll do the business,” he said. 

Melbourne, Australia – According to a press release, Global Sourcing Expo Melbourne and China Clothing Textile Accessories Expo, held from 18 to 20 November, attracted over 5 000 visitors, 8% up on 2024. Over 800 exhibitors from 16 countries showed apparel, textiles, accessories, footwear, homewares and supply chain services. 

SV Q&A With David Cohen, CEO of Superbalist Group of Companies

Q. Please confirm the acquisition, including when it took place.
A. We recently acquired The Athlete’s Foot South Africa in September 2025; we’re really excited about it. It’s a strong, well-loved brand and it fits into what we’re building across the Superbalist Group.

Q. Why did Superbalist buy it?
A. We’ve been watching the performance running space grow rapidly. It is a space that we wanted to be a part of and when the opportunity arose to acquire The Athlete’s Foot we moved fast.
This acquisition allows us through TAF to have an additional focus on performance running and scale this business with our B&M and digital expertise.

Q. How will it operate? Will it continue under that name, and will Superbalist roll out more stores?
A. The Athlete’s Foot will continue to operate under its own name. It has a legacy we respect, and we want to keep that intact.
We have gone through a process of updating and modernising the brand look and feel and a store redesign as well that sets up The Athletes foot as a premium destination in performance running for the world’s best brands.
Behind the scenes, the brand will have the support of our Group systems, tech, logistics, buying, and data.
TAF is growing, watch this space.

Q. Does Superbalist plan more acquisitions? If so, what types of businesses, and what timelines?
A. We’re always open to new opportunities, but we don’t chase growth just for the sake of it.
If we do look at further acquisitions, it would be in categories where we know we can genuinely add value, lifestyle, fashion, youth culture, beauty, sports, any space where we can bring a brand more visibility and help it scale. There’s no set timeline, but we are in ongoing conversations and staying close to the market.

Q. Any other details you regard as relevant?
A. Across the Group, our focus remains the same: building brands that customers love, and creating experiences that feel modern, accessible, and exciting. 

Pretoria, Gauteng, SA – In response to “one of the most persistent and damaging waves of foot and mouth disease (FMD) the country has seen in decades”, the Department of Agriculture plans to vaccinate the entire national cattle herd, according to a press release on 26 November.

FMD affects the leather value chain because reduced slaughter means fewer hides for the tanning industry.

The Minister of Agriculture, John Steenhuisen, said a national cattle herd vaccination would position SA to apply to the World Organisation of Animal Health (WOAH) for recognition of freedom with vaccination status.

“This strategy aims to vaccinate South Africa’s national herd systematically, beginning with the hardest-hit provinces, namely: KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, Free State, Mpumalanga and North West, which will submit their livestock numbers, as well as their number of quarantined farms. This plan, however, will rely on a consistent, high-quality vaccine supply.

“To this end, Minister Steenhuisen confirmed that the government is working closely with the Onderstepoort Biological Products (OBP) and the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) on the formalisation of public-private partnerships with domestic industry and international partners, including China and Argentina, who have already offered technical cooperation and support regarding vaccine provision.

“Minister Steenhuisen further stressed that the success of the FMD response depends not only on vaccines but also on law enforcement. Uncontrolled movement of animals remains the single biggest threat to the national containment efforts.” 

In the Americas, the shoe brand has recently expanded to Shop Simon and Walmart, with Target joining the line up in December.

Clarks is doubling down on its digital presence with a number of new launches on online marketplaces around the world.

And some of the U.K.-based footwear company’s new partners, including Shein, TikTok Shop, Walmart and Target, might be a bit unexpected. The company said that these marketplaces “will help Clarks reach new consumers and make it easier for them to discover and buy its products online.”

In the U.K., Clarks has recently gone live on Shein and Secret Sales, and across Europe, the brand will expand onto Secret Sales Netherlands and Dress for Less before the end of the year.

As for the Americas, Clarks continues to build momentum in the digital segment. Already established on eBay for five years, the shoe brand has recently expanded to Shop Simon, Shein, and Walmart, with Target joining the line up in December.

Gary Champion, president of Clarks Americas, told FN exclusively that the move is meant to meet consumers where they are shopping.

“Clarks has always been able to offer footwear to a broad range of consumers through a broad range of distribution points,” Champion said. “As the retail landscape has evolved, so has the consumer.”

Champion did admit that selling on marketplaces “bring about inherent risks to any brand,” but that consumers are looking to these outlets to shop even more these days.

“By selling directly through those marketplaces, we can control the assortment being offered, the feel of the brand experience and significantly reduce the risk of price compression,” the executive noted.

This expansion into marketplaces follows the brand’s September announcement of its first owned digital marketplace in the UK, set to launch in early 2026 on Clarks.com. The new platform will host multiple trusted brands alongside Clarks, offering customers greater choice and convenience, the company said.

In addition, Clarks continues to build presence on TikTok’s shopping platform. Launching in Singapore and Malaysia in November 2024, Clarks’ TikTok Shop has now expanded to the UK and Americas, with Europe to follow in 2026.