Essa writes tell-all book
A HUMBLE start that catapulted him to great success is what drove high school drop-out, Yusuf “Choppee” Essa to become a respected property pundit.
At the weekend, he releases his first book, The Choppee Journey… From Hotdog Vendor to Property Guru, at Skoobs Theatre of Books in Fourways, Johannesburg.
It tells a story of his experiments with business and how he made it big in the real estate industry internationally.
Essa, 44, of Eldoraigne, Centurion, is a businessman, entrepreneur, philanthropist, chief executive and founder of CHOPROP, which is based in Gauteng.
The youngest of five children, he was born and raised in Laudium.
He lost his father, Ismail Essa, when he was a child and decided to drop out of school to make his mark in the business world.
His father nicknamed him Choppee, a pet name for his youngest child and family favourite, which later became his trademark.
After trying his hand at many business ventures, including being a hotdog vendor in his teen years, he finally found his calling 10 years ago when he and his wife, Shazia, his childhood sweetheart, decided to get into real estate.
“Shazia and I started this business in July 2007 during the crux of economic depression. It was a casual
The Choppee Journey… From Hotdog Vendor to Property Guru, Sunday drive to view show houses in our area that sparked the idea of getting into real estate,” said Essa, who added they always had a passion for property.
“It was not long after we opened our own agency, CHOPROP, which we started from our garage at home. Since then we have grown our property business to an international multi-award winning real estate brand.”
CHOPROP are brand ambassadors for the International Property Awards programme.
They have been awarded with over 40 nominations and awards since its inception.
Essa said his motivation for penning his book, is to highlight the advantages and encourage individuals to get involved in real estate because of the job and wealth creation opportunities in the industry.
He said the real estate industry in South Africa was worth approximately R5 trillion and contributed to about 15% of the country’s GDP.
There are approximately 15 million unemployed people in the country, he said, and the lack of presence when it came to property professionals from the emerging market communities was what drove him to encourage others to pursue a career in real estate.
“I want to make a positive contribution in my country and motivate people to get involved in real estate. There are about 46 000 agents in the country. In my opinion, real estate has been marginalised by the bigger players in the industry.
“I think by teaching people and giving them the skills, we can drive new business and get more people involved. People can learn the business, work for themselves and earn a good income.”
The Choppee Journey is an autobiography of Essa’s life and begins with the arrival of his grandfather, Essa Suliman (only five years-old at the time), who came to South Africa from Gujarat, North India, in the early 1900s. The story moves on to his late father and then Essa’s life and his drive for business, which he developed at the tender age of nine.
From these humble beginnings, he grew an empire.
The company boasts an impressive number of awards, including Best Property Consultancy Marketing Africa; International Property Awards (IPA) – Africa; Best Property Consultancy IPA – Africa; Best Real Estate Agent IPA – Africa; International Star of Leadership in Quality, Bid Group Paris – South Africa; Real Estate Super Achiever; and World Sustainability Congress 2016, Mauritius.
Essa’s plans for the future are bright, he wants to empower people to make it into the real estate industry.