When Belinda van Graan and her husband, Callie, moved to Canada in 2021, they packed up their life, their hopes, and—like so many immigrants—their memories of home. What they didn’t pack were the flavours they grew up with: a proper Mrs Ball’s, some Ouma rusks, maybe a slab of Peppermint Crisp.
At first, it was an adventure. They drove all over the Lower Mainland searching for South African shops, ticking off each store and butcher like it was a scavenger hunt. But what started as fun quickly turned into frustration—especially when they looked online.
“We noticed how expensive everything was,” Belinda recalls. “Some websites were charging almost double what you’d pay in-store. It just didn’t sit right.”
That’s when the idea for The South African Shop began. What if they could find a way to make those same goodies accessible—especially for people in smaller towns and rural areas across Canada, where there are no South African stores around the corner?
They found a local wholesaler willing to work with them and launched TheSouthAfricanShop.ca, a no-frills, online-only store that ships nationwide. It’s not about flashy packaging or big profits—it’s about keeping prices low so that more people can afford to bring a little taste of home into their kitchens.
There’s just one catch—they only ship once a week. But it’s a trade-off they’re happy to make. “By batching our orders and shipping everything on Mondays, we can keep our costs down—and pass those savings on,” says Belinda. “We want to help the person in Moose Jaw or Yellowknife or some remote place that can’t just pop into a shop.”
The South African Shop has quietly become a lifeline for many expats across Canada. It’s not just about food—it’s about connection. About that feeling when a bite of biltong or crunch of a Wilson’s toffee takes you back to a Sunday braai or a childhood memory.
Belinda never set out to become a business owner. But sometimes, when you see a gap that needs filling—and people who need helping—you step up.
