Health and beauty retailer Clicks will work with an inter-ministerial team including the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, to implement and monitor transformation initiatives.
Cape Town – Health and beauty retailer Clicks will work with an inter-ministerial team including the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, to implement and monitor transformation initiatives.
The announcement by the department comes as Clicks’ non-executive director Nonkululeko Gobodo resigned on Monday.
Gobodo had publicly condemned the racist TRESemmé advert published recently, and said Clicks itself would do introspection on how the ad came to be published.
Attempts to reach her on Wednesday were unsuccessful.
Deputy minister Nomalungelo Gina on Wednesday said the department is interested in localisation and transformation, and has developed a cosmetics sector strategy that retailers like Clicks can help advance.
“The advert was racist and offensive and we acknowledge the corrective action that Clicks has since taken but we have to ensure that something good comes out of it and use this opportunity to facilitate entry of local black players into the hair and beauty product market,” said Gina.
Clicks currently has an Enterprise Development Programme and at the end of February this year had invested R65 million, Gina noted.
The programme covers parts of the business outside of the hair and beauty products, including the distribution side for Clicks and United Pharmaceutical Distributors, which is also owned by the Clicks Group.
The inter-ministerial team established to see transformation goals through includes the department, Small Business Development, Labour as well as the Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities in the Presidency.
Clicks recently committed to increase spending on small, micro and medium enterprises and its support for local beauty, hair care brands and other products.
Clicks Group chief executive Vikesh Ramsunder last week held a meeting with Small Business Development Minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni and a senior delegation from her department and others.
Cape Times
