THE VISIBLE HAND
TIM COHEN: Genius of Whitey Basson helped Shoprite grow into an SA and African retail giant
Whitey Basson spent almost 40 years running the company he started
Some years ago, I was asked to contribute to a book on SA’s greatest entrepreneurs. I suggested doing a chapter on Whitey Basson, then CEO of Shoprite. I had no idea that Basson never gave press interviews and didn’t really like the limelight. I think the only reason I got the interview was because of Basson’s corporate relations consultant, an old Business Day colleague, who didn’t even live in SA. The interview itself was a slightly dry affair, and the book’s editor, Moky Makura, who now works for the Gates Foundation, castigated me, somewhat justifiably, for including so few personal details and anecdotes. But that was Basson; a canny, behind the scenes kind of tactician who felt a bit uncomfortable in public spaces. When he did let loose at financial presentations, the results were often disastrous, like the time he was borderline sexist about Shoprite’s all-male executive. Hence, Shoprite’s media relations team was extremely cautious about personal interviews. Even finding the ...
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