The past year has been brutal. So many families have been bereaved, so many breadwinners have lost their jobs, and so many businesses have gone under. At times, the situation has seemed hopeless.
I think back to 1960, when many people were leaving South Africa, and my family and I chose to stay, because we believed there was a great opportunity to work for the end of apartheid and to build a business in a new dispensation. Respect for everyone has been at the core of Pick n Pay’s success and I believe it remains the key to our future as a country.
Recently, I spoke in a meeting and I was talking about us being very positive about the next 60 years. Yes, there are problems, there always will be, but actually what I miss most in retirement is tackling problems.