But expanding on the continent has proved difficult for many blue-chips retailer. When Wal-Mart acquired a majority stake worth about $2.4 billion in Massmart in 2011, the former had hoped to rapidly expand Massmart’s low-cost, high-volume chains outside of South Africa.Yet Massmart’s planned expansion to the broader continent has been slower than expected; partly because of the amount of time it takes to acquire land and proper licenses, according to Guy Hayward, the company’s chief executive. Massive fluctuations in African currencies have also undermined efforts to expand across the region.