Tekkie Town swops home town for mother city

GEORGE NEWS - The decision to move the Tekkie Town head-office, a homegrown George company since 2001, to Cape Town, heralds the end of an era. News of the relocation was broken to employees last week and will take place in stages over the next year.

In response to an enquiry from George Herald, Tekkie Town's recently appointed CEO, Luca Bonadei, who took over from Riaan van Rooyen earlier this year, issued a statement confirming the move.

He said they will be joining the rest of the Pepkor Speciality brands at their divisional support centre in Danena in Cape Town in the Bellville area.

An employee, who asked to remain anonymous, told George Herald they were informed on Monday 25 August that "they have to join the move or be retrenched".

According to Bonadei's statement, "The Tekkie Town leadership team has recently shared with the Tekkie Town head-office in George that the office will be relocating to Cape Town." Bonadei had "shared with the team the strategic rationale behind the move and value that will be unlocked for the business and the team".

Bonadei said they will be closer to the core of their customers and their supplier support base. The move will also unlock bigger opportunities for cross-brand collaboration and career progression for the head-office team.

The move will take place in phases with the first teams moving in January 2026 and the final phase in January 2027.

"All staff members will be accommodated in this move. It has been planned in such a way as to give maximum consideration to those with families and school-going children.

"Whilst it signals the end of an era in George, it equally marks the start of an exciting new chapter of growth and expansion for Tekkie Town in Cape Town at the heart of retail fashion in South Africa."

Huge shock for employees

According to the spouse of one of the employees, who wants to remain anonymous, the announcement came as a huge shock for them. "There is so much uncertainty among the staff. They are still trying to process the announcement. Management is now having one-on-one meetings with everyone."

The spouse said about half of the staff complement of some 200 are affected by the move in January. "The main breadwinners are faced with very difficult decisions. If they choose to move, will they commute or will they move their families with them? They have to find accommodation and place for their children in schools."

Tekkie Town's iconic rise from a sportswear shop in Mossel Bay to a national shoe retailer with 389 stores, founded by Georgian Braam van Huyssteen, gripped the imagination of many, also when he and his management team moved on to build a new enterprise, the Mr Tekkie retail chain, from the ground up, after the Steinhoff scandal.

Upon enquiry, Mr Tekkie CEO Bernard Mostert, said Tekkie Town's move is a pity.

"We were always very proud of the fact that Braam and the people of George were able to build a national retailer on home soil and we feel sorry for the people who are now before the intimidating decision to move to Cape Town or lose their jobs. Most of our team at Tekkie Town back then were second breadwinners who did excellent work, and it is not always possible for them to relocate.

"We are just happy that our second chapter was able to create work for 260 people in George. We've demonstrated once again that it is possible to run a national retailer and distribution from here."

Another employee who spoke on condition of anonymity, said many of the them had remained behind during the exit of the original Tekkie Town management after the Pepkor takeover, having been promised that they will not move from George. Some employees now do not really have a choice, but to stay behind. These people are offered only the severance pay as prescribed by law.

"Should they choose to move, their salaries will not be adjusted even though living costs in Cape Town are higher, and they will not have the personal support structures that they have here in George. Some employees have been working for the company for many years, and sometimes did more than was expected of them.

"It seems the company wants only certain people in Cape Town. Those who will move are offered very generous relocation packages to help them get there and set them up, which will be a huge expense for the company."

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