Clicks versus Dis-Chem
Clicks and Dis-Chem are fighting for market share in the South African pharmaceutical retail sector. Both companies are rolling out new stores and expanding their product offerings.
The retailer Jack Goldin opened the first Clicks store on 6 August 1968 on St George’s Street in Cape Town.
Clicks was initially conceived as a drugstore, but due to restrictive legislation in South Africa, Jack’s pharmacy dream was only realised 35 years later.
In 1971, Clicks opened a store on West Street in Durban. Today, Clicks has a presence across southern Africa, including Namibia, Botswana, Eswatini and Lesotho.
It is South Africa’s leading pharmacy, health, and beauty retailer with over 945 stores and over 730 in-store pharmacies.
Dis-Chem was founded in 1978 by husband-and-wife team Ivan and Lynette Saltzman. They established a small pharmacy with a capital investment of only R10,000.
The business expanded rapidly in Johannesburg and Pretoria in the nineties, using the tried-and-tested formula of discounted medicine and non-pharmaceutical offerings.
The Dis-Chem stores were also always bigger than their competitors, further adding to their appeal.
The business continued to diversify and expand, adding its private-label offerings in 1997 and opening its first franchise in Namibia in 2014.
At the end of the 2024 financial year, Dis-Chem had 327 stores, including 273 Dis-Chem Pharmacies and 54 Dis-Chem Baby City stores.
The company also operates 525 clinics staffed by a dedicated team of 530 registered nursing practitioners.
Clicks and Dis-Chem are the dominant players in the South African pharmacy, health, and beauty retail market, and have been fighting for market share for years.
The information below shows how they compare with each other in market share, revenue, profit, and share price performance.
Clicks versus Dis-Chem financial performance
The tables below provide a comparison between Clicks and Dis-Chem’s financial performance.
| Company | Revenue (R millions) |
| Dis-Chem | R39,172 |
| Clicks | R45,438 |
| Company | Net Income (R millions) |
| Dis-Chem | R1,180 |
| Clicks | R2,837 |
| Company | Market Cap (R millions) |
| Dis-Chem | R28,211 |
| Clicks | R84,540 |
Clicks versus Dis-Chem share price performance
The chart below provides a comparison between Clicks and Dis-Chem’s share price performance in 2025.
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Dischem used to be really good, but they are going down the toilet. The Dischem close to me, which I use for chronic meds has a serious lack of dispensary staff willing to work. They are there, they’re just at the back, chatting away, making calls, singing, etc. Meanwhile the line grows longer and longer and 2 people are working. I have complained to management twice but get told there is nothing they can do as the dispensary does not fall under them!! I’m definitely going to try out Clicks.