PEP

PEP has become part of Cape Town's street-level health infrastructure in ways beyond typical clothing retail. The store operates as a community gathering point in high-footfall areas, often near public transport and informal settlements, where it stocks basics at prices people can actually afford. Staff interactions with regular customers form informal health and safety networks — recognising when someone hasn't been in for weeks, pointing people toward clinics or NGOs, existing as a visible, accessible business in neighbourhoods where formal services feel distant. It's retail that functions as social infrastructure.