James Wellwood Basson, known as ‘Whitey’, is a South African business legend. In 1979, he bought eight small shops in and around Cape Town. Over the years, Whitey quietly built his Shoprite group, acquiring Grand Bazaars and the struggling Checkers. In a famous takeover deal, he bought OK Bazaars from SA Breweries for a single Rand. It became profitable within a year, and Whitey was widely hailed as a business genius.
In this authorised biography, access to the Bassons’ archives and interviews with Whitey and his inner circle, financial journalist Niel Joubert recreates Whitey’s story in rich detail: form his childhood on a Porterville farm to his mentorship at Pep Stores (under the renowned Renier van Rooyen), achieving his lifelong target of eclipsing Pick n Pay, and conquering Africa.
Today, Shoprite is the biggest retailer on the continent, one of the 100 biggest in the world and South Africa’s largest private employer. A colourful, inspirational story.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Niel Joubert is an award-winning financial journalist who has written for Sake24 and Finweek. He also served as associate digital editor of Sake for Netwerk24. He holds degrees in accounting and journalism as well as an MBA from Stellenbosch University. He lives in Somerset-West and works as Communications Manager for Momentum Investments.
'Whitey: The Rise and Rule of the Shoprite King' is published by Tafelberg, an imprint of NB Publishers
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