JOHANNESBURG, May 17 (Reuters) - South Africa's Shoprite

said on Friday it will now allow shoppers to purchase

general merchandise such as small appliances on its on-demand

grocery app, as the country's biggest supermarket group eyes a

larger share of the e-commerce market.

South Africa has seen a sharp rise in online shopping after

the pandemic created an opportunity for e-commerce to finally

take hold, with retailers doubling down on investments in

response.

The group's upmarket brand Checkers was the first grocery

retailer in South Africa to launch an on-demand delivery

service, ahead of its rivals Pick n Pay, SPAR

and Woolworths

Checkers will now enable customers to shop for more than

10,000 larger products, ranging from camping and outdoor gear to

small appliances, kitchen and home electronics and gardening

equipment, with same day delivery scheduled within a 60-minute

time slot.

"We're confident that the next iteration of Sixty60 will

again disrupt online retail in South Africa," Neil Schreuder,

Chief of Strategy and Innovation for the Shoprite Group said.

Shoprite said it is beta testing the new version of its app

and has introduced a fleet of delivery vans to deliver the

larger products. It usually delivers grocery items by motorbike.

The new app is available to shoppers living in Cape Town and

will be rolled out nationally.

Checkers will be challenging the country's e-commerce giant

Takealot.com, owned by Naspers, which mostly sells

general merchandise. Amazon also recently launched in the

country.