Chief Executive Louis du Preez told investors the "only way to survive" is for the company to become a pure investment holding company mainly focused on retail, which is why most of its asset sales had been in property and shares rather than retail holdings.

Outgoing Chief Financial Officer Philip Dieperink said France would be a key focus area of the restructuring plan, confirming the possibility of closures and retrenchments at furniture dealer Conforama already disclosed by Steinhoff in April.

(The story corrects spelling of Conforama in headline and paragraphs 1 and 3)

(Reporting by Wendell Roelf; writing by Mfuneko Toyana; editing by Jason Neely)