19 Oct Meet Whitey Basson: the retail guru who turned Shoprite into a R127bn behemoth

Love or hate him; former Shoprite CEO Whitey Basson is a retail genius. The Money Show’s Bruce Whitfield interviewed Basson for his “ShapeShifter” feature.

Basson led Shoprite from 1979 to 2016. It grew under Basson from eight tiny stores with a combined value of R1-million into Africa’s largest retailer, with a market cap of R127-billion.

Basson was, until his retirement at the end of last year, South Africa’s best paid executive, by far. In 2016; Basson’s remuneration totalled R100.1-million.

Shoprite was also compelled to buy back shares from Basson to the value of R1.8-billion.

I wanted to become a medical student… I got admitted to UCT, but never went.

— Whitey Basson

We [Christo Wiese] were very close at varsity…

— Whitey Basson

…Van Rooyen [Pep] had a passion for supplying affordable clothing…

— Whitey Basson

Between 1974 and 1977/1978, I basically ran Pep stores at the mature age of 28.

— Whitey Basson

A lot of landlords didn’t want us… they were a bit upmarket!

— Whitey Basson

South Africa has all the elements to be a world-class country that provides a decent standard of living for everybody.

— Whitey Basson

In South Africa we have so many regulations, it drives you crazy.

— Whitey Basson