We've reached something of a landmark on PriceShare, having enough data to start drawing some serious conclusions about the kind of pricing on offer in our launch area, the KwaZulu-Natal Upper Highway. We're wasting no time and diving into our first analysis, and the store in question today is KwikSPAR Hillcrest.

Most shoppers already have a pretty clear idea of where the KwikSPAR brand falls into the price spectrum. It's a convenience store, typically located in under-served areas or close to main roads, focused on quick access and longer shopping hours. You could almost describe it as a middle ground between a full-blown retailer and a petrol station shop.

While most shoppers expect to pay a little more, not many are sure just how much more they're paying, and whether the amount of convenience justifies the markup. So let's get into the hard numbers.

We're going to compare to other stores in the area, using the "All Products" option, and you can see the analysis here (opens in new page):
http://priceshare.co.za/Compare/CompareStore?storeIds=&basketId=®ionId=2

At the time of writing, we can observe the following:

• We recorded prices for 194 items, at a value of R6,082.60


• On average these prices were 3.7% more expensive than the average price across all stores


• Going on that average, if we had managed to buy all 820 products in question, that would amount to a basket of R21,696.42


• Now if you were shopping around for the cheapest offer on each of those products, your total basket price would be R20,307.41


• That would make KwikSPAR Hillcrest 6.84% more expensive than the cheapest basket and 3.7% more expensive than the average basket


• In comparison, Oxford Hillcrest is about 3.8% less than the average


• In conclusion, for every R1,000 you spend at KwikSPAR Hillcrest, you're probably paying about R68 extra, compared to Oxford Hillcrest, and about R37 extra, compared to the average price

If there was any doubt about KwikSPAR Hillcrest being more expensive, the above information makes a clear case that it is indeed so. However, shoppers will correctly argue that price is not everything. For some, better parking is the deciding factor, or perhaps the smaller store size, or perhaps the particular service of the store. Others prefer the quality of SPAR-brand products, which raises the interesting question: how does KwikSPAR compare with Richdens SPAR, especially on SPAR-brand products.

At this stage we have very little SPAR-brand data, so we can't really draw any conclusions in that respect, but on the same basket comparisons as we performed above, we found Richdens SPAR Hillcrest to be a very good performer, matching up on 155 products and coming in at 1.7% more expensive that Oxford, and some 6% cheaper than KwikSPAR. The suggestion is that if you're loyal to the SPAR brand, you're better off shopping at Richdens. Otherwise, you might choose KwikSPAR because you prefer the parking or store size.

Ultimately, you know as a shopper what's important to you, and we'd like to hear from you. You can provide your own review of KwikSPAR Hillcrest by clicking on the link below and entering a rating or comment. We'll combine these comments and come back to everyone with an overview of what the consensus is. You can rate and comment on any store in our system, and we'd love that kind of feedback.

To rate/comment on KwikSPAR Hillcrest, click on the link below:
http://priceshare.co.za/Store/CommentStore?storeId=10