Since only a small amount of electronics and appliances are manufactured locally, they have in previous years often been sold at a fairly high mark-up relative to prices in Europe or the Americas. However, the efforts of a few competitive chains (Hi Fi Corporation foremost among them) have helped drive price slashes, even as importation and local manufacture has become more streamlined. As such, you’ll find international products sold at roughly the same prices (or lower) as they are overseas.
Home Appliances
You’ll find all the essential home appliances (washing machines, vacuum cleaners, etc) at most of the big chain furnishers listed under ‘Home Furnishing’. Below are the descriptions of a couple of specialty stores.
Eagle Appliances
Eagle appliances stocks all manner of household and kitchen appliances, with a range that goes from low middle to relatively expensive. They’re conveniently located in the CBD, taking up numbers 31 through 35 in Hout Street. (see http://www.eagleappliances.co.za/images/map_eagleappliances.gif for directions).
Call 021 423 4943 or visit http://www.eagleappliances.co.za
A&A Furnishers
A&A Furnishers stocks fridges, microwaves and dishwashers alongside quality audio visual equipment and beds. They’re conveniently situated for City Bowl residents, but price comparisons with Tafelberg reveal that you may wind up paying as much as R400 to R500 more here. You’ll find them at 47 Kloof Street, Gardens.
Call 021 424 6150 or visit http://www.aafurnishers.co.za.
Electronics
Hi Fi Corporation
This chain specializes in selling home entertainment products, but also stocks kitchen appliances, phones, computers and other gadgets. Hi Fi corporation was founded on the ethic of selling electronic products for the lowest possible prices – you’ll often find you’ve saved as much as thirty or forty percent by buying from them instead of competing stores, especially those in large malls, where products tend to sell for a huge mark-up due to the stores’ overheads.
Visit http://www.hificorporation.co.za and use the store locator to find your nearest branch.
Incredible Connection
With more than 60 stores nationwide, Incredible connection stores are general stockists of well-priced computer products, as well as all the accessories and consumables that go with computing – disks, printing supplies, games, gaming consoles and so forth. They also offer technical services for installations, upgrades and repairs.
Orms Pro Photo Warehouse
Orms serves the high-end, professional photographic market (a large market indeed in Cape Town, with its thriving film and advertising industries), selling every piece of equipment or accessory you could possibly require. They also have the best photo development facilities in the city. Orms is pricey but salespeople routinely give discounts off the marked price, so ask before you buy. Orms is Shop 5 in the Roeland Square building, on the corner of Roeland and Canterbury Street in the CBD.
Call 021 465 3573 or visit http://www.orms.co.za.
Hardware Stores
Penny Pinchers
These large-scale stores are modeled around the stages of the building process. They stock timber, paint, sealants, roofing materials, windows, boards, tiles and mouldings, among numerous other products. As the name suggests, they’re also rather cheap.
Call 08600 835 587 or visit http://www.pennypinchers.co.za/contact-us/western-cape/ to find your nearest branch.
Builders Warehouse
With stores in and around Cape Town, these massive A-Z DIY stores offer an excellent range of home improvement and building products sold at competitive prices.
Call Customer Care on 0860 28 45 3377 or visit http://www.builderswarehouse.co.za and use the store locator to find your nearest branch.
Other
Other places you might find electronics at truly bargain-bin prices are the local pawn-shop chains. There’s the internationally franchised Cash Convertors and the local competitor Cash Crusaders, both of which are common fixtures on Main Roads in most areas. These stores buy and sell second-hand electronics, including TV’s, cell phones and sound systems, along with sporting goods and other random bric-a-brac.
Cash Converters: Call 0861 26 68 378 or visit http://www.cashconverters.co.za and use the store locator to find your nearest store.
Cash Crusaders: Call their Western Cape offices on 021 787 9800 or visit http://www.cashcrusaders.co.za and use the store locator to find your nearest branch.
