Woolworths: Reputation ‘is in own league’ in SA

The reputation of retailer Woolworths strengthened this year while other firms fared poorly, the Reputation Institute said yesterday. “The 2014 survey shows Woolworths is in a league of its own. Its success comes in an environment in which South African corporates are suffering a bloodbath in their reputations,” the institute’s Africa partner, Dominik Heil, said. Woolworths’s reputation strengthened to 74.31 points on the institute’s gauge from 73.98 last year. It was the only company to score above 70 points. Last year’s leader, Vodacom, lost 9.35 points. The institute carries out the survey annually and is in its ninth year in the country. It measures the reputation of the largest listed companies. Standard Bank moved up 0.27 points to 68.77, while FNB lost 9.08 points. Woolworths rose 2.83 percent to R77.43. – Sapa