Pick n Pay has awarded chief executive Sean Summers two million conditional shares currently worth approximately $2.4 million (R37.7 million) as he attempts to complete the retailer’s delayed supermarket turnaround.
The shares were issued at no cost on 28 August under Pick n Pay’s forfeitable share plan.
However, Summers will not automatically receive their full value.
They are scheduled to vest on 25 June 2029 only if he meets personal targets and Pick n Pay satisfies specified financial and non-financial conditions.
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**Earlier incentive was lost after recovery slipped**
The award comes less than two months after Summers forfeited one million performance shares connected to an earlier turnaround package.
*Business Day* reported that the forfeited shares were worth approximately $1.3 million (R21 million) when Pick n Pay disclosed the outcome.
They were lost after the company moved the break-even target for its core supermarket business from the 2028 to the 2029 financial year.
Pick n Pay has not described the latest two-million-share allocation as a direct replacement for the forfeited award.
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However, the new incentive gives Summers another potentially substantial reward tied to the period in which the delayed recovery is supposed to be completed.
The performance conditions include progress towards supermarket profitability, reductions in headline losses, cash generation and personal objectives.
The complete weighting of each target has not been disclosed in the latest announcement.
**A costly supermarket repair**
Summers returned to Pick n Pay in 2023 after previously leading the retailer between 1999 and 2007.
He inherited a business that had lost market share and suffered from an unsuccessful expansion strategy. Pick n Pay subsequently reported the first full-year loss in its history.
The recovery programme has included closing or converting underperforming stores, reducing costs, changing regional management and raising capital.
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Pick n Pay also listed its faster-growing Boxer subsidiary and later sold additional shares in the business to finance the wider group.
The company reported a profit before tax and capital items of R360 million for its 2026 financial year. However, its core supermarket operation remained loss-making.
In its latest trading update, turnover at South African Pick n Pay stores declined 0.4%, partly reflecting store closures and conversions. Boxer’s turnover rose 7.2%.
**The $2.4 million value is not guaranteed**
The present value of Summers’ award was calculated using Pick n Pay’s share price when the allocation was disclosed.
If all targets are achieved and the share price rises, the shares could ultimately be worth more. If the price falls, they could be worth less.
The entire award can also be forfeited if the vesting conditions are not met.
It should therefore not be described as a $2.4 million cash payment or guaranteed bonus.
The new shares increase the financial stakes surrounding Summers’ extended tenure. His contract now runs until May 2028, while the shares are due to vest the following year.
The central test is whether Pick n Pay’s supermarket business can return to sustainable profitability before another incentive deadline arrives.