South Africa Edition 2

THE MARKET
With a R778 million turnover for its last financial
year and holding 22 percent of the South African
retail entertainment market, Musica has rocked its
way into big-brand status in a highly competitive
industry.
Originally a music retailer selling local and
international music on “long playing albums”
and “seven singles”, and then on CDs, Musica has
diversified into entertainment retailing, offering
DVDs, gaming and digital products. Its range
of hardware now includes gaming consoles and
controllers, MP3 players and sound systems.
Like entertainment itself, Musica’s target
market is extremely broad. While focusing on
the 16-35 year-old age group in LSM 6-10,
Musica keeps its selection vast to capture the
older - and younger - markets. It’s a brand that
connects with the teenager in everyone, working
on the premise that the face of entertainment is
always youthful - even when it’s older . . . even
Mick Jagger just turned 60! It’s about universal
appeal and relevance for all. A company goal is
to ensure customers never outgrow Musica, that
it becomes “your entertainment partner for life”.
While the brand tone remains the same, the
manner in which Musica satisfies customers’
changing needs is adjusted. Whether dealing with
youth or experience, Musica remains accessible.
The most significant recent gains in market
share have been in the DVD, gaming and digital
categories, reflecting the drive of the business
over the medium term. Music, the company’s
heritage, is still a vital part of the business, and
one where market share has remained stable.
Digital music downloads now allow users to
purchase songs from the comfort of their homes.
Musica has taken full advantage of this trend
and offers download facilities from its website.
Its site also offers fully functional e-commerce
facilities so customers can buy CDs, DVDs and
games alongside their digital downloads. At the
same time, the company has ensured that the
in-store experience is consistently engaging for
real-time shoppers.
Musica sees an enormous amount of potential
growth in the South African entertainment retail
market. The DVD and gaming markets are on
massive growth curves, while there are significant
gains to be made by connecting customers to
the vast local talent on offer. Musica anticipates
both turnover and market share to increase in the
short- to medium-term.
ACHIEVEMENTS
A brand that has received numerous awards,
Musica is also the 2006 and 2007 Sunday Times
Generation Next survey (8-22 youth market)
winner for Coolest Music Outlet. Musica prides
itself on meaningful advertising that achieves
results. Indeed, Musica has created some of
South Africa’s most memorable advertising.
Nominations and awards include
• D&AD silver Nomination
• Winner of the Loerie Grand Prix
• Winner of 13 Gold Loeries
• Winner of five London Statues and a London
Grand Prix
• Winner of six Gold New York Festivals and a
New York Festival Grand Prix
• Shortlist, Cannes three times
• Winner of funniest television commercial
Musica can claim an impressive number of
industry and retailing firsts:
• First and only retailer to open DVD-only
stores, which offered movie buffs a complete
cinematic retail experience with a strong
value proposition
• First with DVD-viewing stations in stores to
assist customers with their choices
• First music retailer to incorporate a coffee
shop into its store experience
• First music retailer to launch a custom
publication (Pulse Magazine)
• First brand in South Africa to open a legal
digital download store
Partnering with OD2, the company founded
by Genesis front man Peter Gabriel, Musica
launched its digital download facility in 2005
with 400,000 tracks. The offering has increased
to well over 1 million tracks, often featuring rare,
live and pre-release singles. Work is under way to
feature more South African content as well as a
download-to-cellular offering.
HISTORY
As the song says, “late December back in ‘63”
was quite a time for then-matric student Derek
Goosen and his mom. They launched the Fleetway
Record Bar, named for the other family business -
Fleetway Transport in Plumstead in the Cape and