ROB ROSE: The mysterious exit of Brian Joffe
Rumours of a clash with the board of the company he started are exaggerated — but just wait until his venture starts bidding against them
A clipped 44-word stock exchange announcement hardly seems an appropriate way to bid adieu to one of the country’s great entrepreneurs. Yet this was the extent of the plaudits Bidvest heaped on Brian Joffe, the 70-year-old who founded its business 28 years ago, in an announcement two weeks ago simply titled: "resignation of nonexecutive director". It seemed so sterile it may as well have been written in Dettol on a cotton wool ball and turfed absent-mindedly in the disposables can. It said Joffe quit "with immediate effect", then added that icy cliché that might as well have been delivered by NetFlorist: "Bidvest expresses its appreciation to Mr Brian Joffe for his contribution over many years." The way it’s written, it sounds as if he’d been offhandedly drawing up the odd spreadsheet rather than being the man who, courtesy of 16-hour days, forged a R158bn empire from a measly R1m and a cash shell back in 1988. If Bidvest is what it is — a company that achieved 30% compound growth i...
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