Raymond Ackerman, businessman and founder of Pick n Pay has died at the age of 92 in Cape Town, South Africa.
Ackerman was one of the visionary and business leaders of retail in South Africa and the rest of the African continent.
Pick n Pay confirmed the passing of Ackerman in a social media post.
“With profound sadness we announce that Pick n Pay founder Raymond Ackerman has passed away. A visionary entrepreneur, humanitarian and a great South African. Our country has lost a brilliant patriot who always saw a positive future for South Africa.”
The retail giant in a press statement said, “from the outset, [Raymond Ackerman] – considered one of the country’s most successful entrepreneurs – lived by the core values that the customer is queen and that doing good is good business”.
Ackerman was always upfront, “to giving customers the best possible products, the best possible value, and the best possible service in his stores”.
In his memoir ‘Hearing Grasshopper’s Jump’, he co-founded the grocery chain store with his wife Wendy, they bought four small stores in Mother City and renamed them Pick n Pay… as they say, the rest is history.
Pick ‘n Pay is a business giant run as a family business. His wife Wendy and his four children, Suzanne, Kathryn, Jonathan, and Gareth, all work for Pick ‘n Pay or for its charity. On 21 October 2009, his first born Gareth took over his father’s duties, and on 1 March 2010, the chairmanship as well.
History Behind the name Ackerman:
Raymond Ackerman started Pick n Pay after he was fired from Checkers, he was one of the 1st managers after Checkers was founded. Norman Herber, the guy who started Checkers was a former chairman at Greatermans, the business of Raymond’s father Gus. The Ackermans store you see today at the malls was started by Raymond’s father Gus Ackerman.
Hamba kahle Mdala and Legend!
