Page 12 - GrowSA News September

I N D U S T R Y F E A T U R E
BOPLAAS -ABUSINESS BUILT ON FAMILY, SUSTAINABILITYAND

INNOVATION CONTINUED...

Fanie describes the farm as a cultural treasure in
South Africa. The tradi�onal farmyard is s�ll in its
original condi�on, with all its original
infrastructure (the old watermill, soap house,
wagon house, main house and the bake house in
its Cape Dutch design) which dates back +/- 1780.

Fanie van der Merwe is the current Managing
Director of Boplaas 1743 Landgoed. The Van Der
Merwe family has been cul�va�ng the land since
th
1743, with the 10 genera�on in management
th
posi�ons and the 11 genera�on already born.
Fanie entered the family business at a young age.
Over the course of 38 years, his role has changed
from Financial Director to Marke�ng Manager and
Managing Director. His eldest son joined the
company in 2011 and his three brothers followed
later – all cul�va�ng different roles. He shares a
home with his beau�ful wife of 35 years, she is
their CEO, which stands for Chief Emo�onal
Operator.

He quotes Nike when he says that his mo�o is to
‘just do it’. He advises that you need to center
yourself in a network of posi�ve people. Believe in
your capabili�es and start each morning with the
inten�on to make a difference.

Fanie shares his knowledge and experience and
recently spoke at PWC’s Next Gen webinar where
he spoke about succession planning, family owned
business and governing regula�ons. He was also a
speaker at the virtual conference of Nampo.

The Boplaas MD says that his grain is s�ll green
and you never depart from the learning phase but
if he was to give advice to other family owned
businesses, he would suggest that one should
understand all the terms and regula�ons as
thoroughly as possible. Create your cons�tu�on
and succession plan as quick as possible and revise
annually. Strategy follows structure. Implement
policies. Most importantly, grace is all around us
and never forget that!

FABASA is a great pla�orm to speak to experts and
to make sure that all the above is in place to
ensure the survival of your family business.

September | GROWSA MONTHLY NEWS 12