Boxer boxes clever but Woolies still dogged by offshore woes

The discount retailer's latest update shows that its no-frills business model is paying off. Woolworths, meanwhile, remains weighed down by Australia, where Country Road offsets growth in the local business

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Death, taxes and pain for Woolworths in Australia: these are the three certainties in life.

Just when investors thought it was safe to go outside again after the disposal of David Jones, the troubles in Australia have worsened for Woolworths' Country Road business.

It's become so dreadful that we once again have a situation where the group performance is on a negative trajectory purely because of the offshore operations, despite signs of improvement here at home.

In stark contrast, Boxer's simple business model is working beautifully in the retail space. It's a great example of getting one thing right and then scaling it, much like Capitec managed to do in the banking sector with a similar client base of lower-income South Africans. Perhaps being forced to have a compelling offer at the most competitive possible price creates a culture of focus and nailing the basics, leading to a better business overall?

With both retailers having released important updates in the past week, it's worth digging deeper to understand why investors appreciate business models that have fewer layers of risks.

We begin with Boxer as the poster child for what the market loves seeing.

Boxer is the best part of Pick n Pay