“ Shop closures will have a very small effect on the industry; as soon as these operations are allowed to commence, they will do so with little disturbance to historic turnover figures”
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“ Shop closures will have a very small effect on the industry; as soon as these operations are allowed to commence, they will do so with little disturbance to historic turnover figures”
NEIL WILKIE, YELLOWBET push other products such as poker, bingo, online casino and slots”. But he adds:“ The jury is still out on the long-term popularity once we see a return of live sporting events.”
More certain, he suggests, is that the recent crisis will“ give the continent the kick-start it needs and allow people to move away from retail”. They won’ t shun it entirely, he adds.“ Not that shops won’ t always have their place. There are strong cultural ties to betting shops and people like to bet with their friends. They also provide free Wi-Fi, which is important.”
Neil Wilkie, managing director of Yellowbet, suggests that betting shops’ roles in many villages and townships as the“ social hubs of the communities” will continue.“ Shop closures / lockdowns will have a small effect on the industry; as soon as these operations are allowed to commence, they will do so with very little disturbance to historic turnover figures.”
Mathew Symmonds, chief executive and founder of Web Analysis Solutions, the company behind largely African-facing affiliate sites WinDrawWin and
PredictZ, agrees.“ Many still prefer to bet offline than online, partly because of trust, but also because betting in retail shops creates a social environment for consumers where they can meet others and watch sport in those shops.
“ Many consumers still like to bet in physical cash, and get a physical bet slip, and many consumers do not have access to payment methods that they can use online, like bank accounts or cards. Mobile data is still expensive in Africa too, so betting online is more restrictive than in European markets.”
October 2020