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# South Africa’s First Refill Grocery Store Opens in Diepsloot
- URL: https://www.startup.africa/south-africas-first-refill-grocery-store-opens-in-diepsloot/
- Published: 2025-07-03T12:41:55.000Z
- Updated: 2025-08-12T08:58:41.000Z
- Author: Lungile Msomi
- Tags: Latest

South Africa’s first refill grocery store, Skubu, has officially launched in Diepsloot, Johannesburg. The initiative is backed by the[ Department of Science, Technology and Innovation](https://www.dsti.gov.za/?ref=startup.africa) (DSTI), in partnership with the[ Council for Scientific and Industrial Research](https://www.csir.co.za/?ref=startup.africa) (CSIR) and local startup Sonke (Pty) ltd, via the [Circular Economy Demonstration Fund](https://www.circulareconomy.co.za/funding/?ref=startup.africa).

The concept store allows customers to refill essential groceries such as cooking oil, maize meal, sugar and cleaning products using their containers, reducing the need for single-use plastics. This model also helps low-income households save money, with potential savings up to 50% thanks to standardised per-litre pricing across refill sizes.

Skubu was designed to eliminate up to 100% of single-use plastic packaging and is part of a broader push to promote circular economy practices in South Africa. 

[SA Government Launches R1m Tech Innovation ChallengeSA government has launched a R1m tech challenge to support innovative startups and showcase digital talent at the 2025 G20 Summit in Cape Town.![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/c2/50/c250459f-583a-4038-a1bf-9aa5491ac654/content/images/icon/2025-07-28-15-08-40-1-23.png)Startup.AfricaLungile Msomi![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/c2/50/c250459f-583a-4038-a1bf-9aa5491ac654/content/images/thumbnail/Tech-Africa-Articles--24--1.jpg)](https://www.startup.africa/sa-govt-launches-r1-million-tech-challenge/)

Technology partner [Sonke](https://sonke.org/?ref=startup.africa), designs, manufactures and manages IoT-enabled automated refill stations underpinned by proprietary back-end software. This system provides full traceability across the supply chain, from receipt and dispatch, to machine restocking and sale to the shopper.

Professor Linda Godfrey, a principal researcher at the CSIR and lead of Circular Innovation South Africa, said the project exemplifies the value of collaborative innovation.

“Skubu is a great demonstration initiative to show how circular economy principles can be implemented through collaboration. The intention is to focus on the national system of innovation, which looks at how a country creates and applies new ideas to improve technology and grow its economy. This includes bringing universities and science councils closer to the private sector to help de-risk and scale circular interventions,” Godfrey concluded.