Fortunes: The Rise and Rise of Afrikaner Tycoons

by Ebbe Dommisse

A handful of Afrikaners have risen to the very top of the business world in South Africa in the past three decades, some of them now dollar billionaires with vast global business interests.With Koos Bekker at its helm, media group Naspers grew to dominate the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and was transformed into a global consumer internet group. Johann Rupert boldly extended Richemont's share in the upper-end market of luxury goods, while Christo Wiese and Whitey Basson at Pepkor and Shoprite became Africa's largest clothing and food retailers.Based predominantly on personal interviews, Fortunes reveals why individuals such as Jannie Mouton, Michiel le Roux, Douw Steyn, Johan van Zyl, GT Ferreira, Hendrik du Toit, and several commercial farmers, turn whatever they touch to gold. Work ethic, astute alliances and an appetite for risk have catapulted them to great heights.The rise of the Afrikaner super-rich has coincided with the government's black economic empowerment programme, making it one of the unexpected features of the South African economy today.Fortunes is an unrivalled work that explains who these tycoons are, how they built their empires and how the sensational collapse of Steinhoff International, led by Markus Jooste, almost destroyed some of their fortunes. The book boldly interrogates their spirit of enterprise, faults and follies, but also their vast philanthropic contributions to the country.

Genres: Biography, Business

544 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 27, 2021

Reviews

[Farai Gorden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Initially found the book bland. Just a narration of stories which did not lead me to wanting to search more about those written in the book. The other thing is that I read this after I read The Stellenbosch Mafia, so the comparison tends to creep in. Then I read the GT and Jannie stories and enjoyed them so much that my view changed. I enjoyed the Koos Bekker story also.

Its clichéd to say it but I learnt significantly from the Mouton chapter. Fantastic!!!

[Anschen Conradie · Rating 4 out of 5]

#Fortuine - Ebbe Dommisse
#jonathanball

Laat ek sommer van meet af aan erken: ek was baie nuuskierig oor hierdie boek, maar het ook bietjie geïntimideerd daardeur gevoel. My hoogste ekonomiese kwalifikasies is Rekeningkunde in Matriek en ‘n paar regsvakke met ‘n ekonomiese inslag iewers in die vorige eeu. Ek is boonop syfer dislekties en my brein sluit af sodra ‘n bedrag meer as 6 syfers het, so ek was benoud dat hierdie lywige boek vér bo my vuurmaakplek sou wees.

Maar dis soms ‘n groot verligting en vreugde om te kan erken dat mens heeltemal verkeerd was - en my vrese was hier totaal ongegrond. Die boek is toeganklik, relevant, boeiend, insiggewend en soms selfs komies. Die skrywer fokus op die sukses van Afrikaner-sakelui tydens die afgelope 3 dekades en verskaf in die inleidende hoofstukke reeds interessante trivia: die rykste mens van alle tye was ‘n Afrikaan, Keiser Musa 1 van Mali (1280-1337) wat geheers het oor die Malinese Ryk, ‘n Islamitiese Staat so groot soos Wes-Europa wat Ghana en Mali ingesluit het en ‘n geskatte rykdom van $400 miljard besit het.

‘n Bondige geskiedenis van die opkoms van Afrikaner-sakelui (in teenstelling met die tradisioneel Joodse en Engelse sakelui) in Suid-Afrika word dan verskaf; onder andere die ontstaan van die na-oorlogse Helpmekaarbeweging en die totstandkoming van die Rembrandt-groep.

‘n Paar sakereuse en -magnate kry daarna elk individuele hoofstukke: Koos Bekker, wat Naspers van ‘n mediamaatskappy tot ‘n internasionale beleggingsreus uitgebrei het; Johann Rupert, stigter van Rand Aksepbank en sedert die 1980’s betrokke by die Rembrandt-groep, later Richemont Groep; Christo Wiese, wat van ‘n hersteller van voertuigverkoelers tot ‘n advokaat tot ‘n diamanthandelaar tot die vader van Pep Stores gevorder het en sy studentevriend, Whitey Basson, die dryfkrag agter die grootste kleinhandelgroep in Afrika, Shoprite-Checkers, wat OK-Bazaars in 1997 vir R1 gekoop het.

Groot name in die bankwese, GT Ferreira en Laurie Dippenaar (First National) en Michiel le Roux (Capitec) kom dan aan die beurt, gevolg deur bekendes uit die versekeringswese en ander individue wat spesiale vermelding verdien. Verskeie feite en anekdotes kleur elke hoofstuk in, bv dat Douw Steyn tydens hofverskynings sy broekspype met ‘n mes afgesny en kaalvoet rondgeloop het omdat hy warm gekry het en die oorsprong van Markus Jooste (Steinhoff) se bynaam ‘Bobaas van die heelal’. Die invloed en effek van die Steinhoff-saga, Guptaleaks en die beweerde Stellenbosch Mafia word ook beskryf en in die slothoofstukke (‘Land van gewers’ en ‘Mallighede en hebbelikhede’ word minder bekende feite oor al hierdie kleurvolle karakters met die leser gedeel.

‘n Interessant insluiting is die 2 hoofstukke oor megaboere as ‘ultrapeneurs’ (‘Megaboere wat as innoverende landbouers die modernste tegnieke gebruik om grootskaalse en volgehoue produksie te verseker’), geskryf deur die skrywer se seun, Jacques.

Lesers wat in wie, wat, waar, hoe en hoekom belangstel, sal hierdie indrukwekkende werk fassinerend vind. Dit is ook as e-boek en in Engels beskikbaar.

#Uitdieperdsebek

[Philip De Villiers · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I found the research and the facts in the book interesting and informative, unfortunately the editing in the English version was poor and even had some Afrikaans pages in the English translation. I would have enjoyed some more detail in the descriptions of the rise of the various individuals as well as more facts and figures.

[Holger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lekker stories with a bonus section about SA's Megaboere.

[Berdine Bezuidenhout · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lanklaas 'n boek so insiggewend gevind!

[Andre · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliantly written. Ebbe Dommisse has again told a complex story in a way that captivates the reader and makes for enthusiastic reading.

[Mpezilwe Simukoko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative book. Well researched

[Juel Starke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent. Easy to follow even if you are not an economist.

[Johan J Botha · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read

Amazing how the stories of all these Afrikaner tycoons confirm what is possible if there is a will to do and achieve....