
Top stories






Following the launch of the new Checkers Sixty60 app in October 2024, various representatives of Blind SA – including Christo de Klerk (president), Jace Nair (CEO) Nicole Roos (Member of the Advocacy and Information Committee) – met with the Sixty60 team to submit a list of priority issues that the visually impaired community were concerned about.
Blind SA also made sound recordings of the iPhone voice-over feature to demonstrate some of the problems being faced on the updated version.
“Since the app update of January 2025, it is much more accessible. Not only did Checkers Sixty60 make technical enhancements on the app, but they also invested in upskilling their developers, product owners, and testers on accessibility paradigms and tools, embedding a critical skillset and awareness in the team,” said de Klerk.
“Checkers serves as a role model for other companies in their commitment to engage with blind users and improving their app for blind and partially sighted shoppers,” he added.
Some of the issues addressed include:
The onboarding experience is now fully accessible with improved labels and control types.
Product cards are now fully accessible, enabling:
User-created shopping lists can now independently be edited by a blind user and are in fact very easy to edit.
Accessibility enhancements include:
New additions include:
Search functionality is now fully accessible:
This section is now fully accessible:
Additional functionality that will be addressed soon, include:
Accessibility improvements will enable users to hear their basket total and savings amounts directly from the navigation bar.
Product line items will allow customers to easily adjust item quantities (increase/decrease).
Further improvements to button accessibility.
"Although it has not been possible to iron out all accessibility issues as yet, Checkers remains in constant communication with Blind SA. My hope is that other retailers will be as willing to improve their accessibility to ensure equal access for all,” said Roos.