Joffe takes a bullish stance on the future
Consumer spend to boost uptick in the economy, says Long4Life boss
Deal-making doyen Brian Joffe, who started building the sprawling Bidvest empire during one of the country’s most turbulent times, has urged financial institutions and asset managers to invest in SA.
Speaking in his capacity as chief executive at the annual general meeting of investment company Long4Life on Monday, Joffe said these days investment entities were very anti-South African.
“I would encourage investors to put more money into SA . . . to help develop entrepreneurs. I would encourage them to do more for SA.”
Joffe has been through several tough business and political cycles since he came to prominence with the launch of Bidvest in 1988. This took place at a time when investors were pulling out of SA, following then state president PW Botha’s markets-rattling Rubicon speech three years earlier.
The prevailing political cli-
I would encourage investors to put more money into South Africa
mate – particularly the move towards land expropriation without compensation – has knocked an already brittle investor sentiment.
Many so-called South African Inc stocks on the JSE have traded at desultory levels for the last four months after initially perking up following Cyril Ramaphosa’s appointment as president of the country.
Joffe’s backing of local investment opportunities stands in stark contrast to a more cautious stance adopted by other business personalities – especially in the mining and industrial sectors.
Last week Sibanye-Stillwater chief executive Neal Froneman expressed concern over whether the latest mining charter could reconcile the expectations of the ANC’s constituency and the need to attract investment into a deeply troubled sector.
“We’re very close to a point of no return where this is not recoverable. If we continue with policies that are not investor friendly and are totally populist that will be the end and there’ll be no recovery from it,” he said ominously.
Joffe stressed Long4Life, which listed in early 2017, was strongly focused on South Afri- can-based opportunities. To date, the cash-flush company has made investments in sports and outdoor business Holdsport, beauty salon franchise Sorbet, as well as beverages specialists Chill and Inhle.
Noting the weak consumer conditions in SA, Afrifocus Securities senior analyst Des Mayer asked whether Long4Life was banking on better trading conditions in three to four years’ time. Joffe said the increase in VAT and fuel price hikes were dampening consumer sentiment, but said that there would be an eventual uptick in consumer spending.
“There are 55-million people equipped to spend when trading conditions improve. We [Long4Life] won’t be laggards, and will recover more quickly than the general consumer market.”
Asked about the environment for making acquisitions, Joffe said sellers were still holding out for price.
“There has been some tightening up, but the market is still not cheap. The political environment is causing some pressure, and some people might like to diversify by looking offshore.”
Long4Life was looking for niche deals where there was an opportunity for the company to add value, he said.
“What we don’t want to do, though, is get caught up in a whole lot of small acquisitions. We have a small management team.
“We’d rather do something bold.”