PICK N PAY FOUNDER AND RETAIL PIONEER ACKERMAN DIES AT 92

Thu 07 September 2023:

Raymond Ackerman, a pioneer in South African retail, passed away on Thursday at the age of 92, Pick n Pay confirmed.

Ackerman is survived by his wife Wendy, children Gareth, Kathy, Suzanne and Jonathan, his 12 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

“With profound sadness we announce that Pick n Pay founder Raymond Ackerman has passed away,” the group said in a short release.

“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.”

Ackerman came from a retailing family. His father founded Ackermans after World War 1.

Raymond Ackerman grew up in Cape Town, matriculated from the Diocesan College (Bishops), and earned a commerce degree from the University of Cape Town.

He started his career with the retail chain Ackerman’s, which was founded by his father Gus. In 1946, the chain was sold to Greatermans, which started the supermarket group Checkers. Ackerman became CEO of Checkers in 1959, but seven years later was fired following clashes with the Greatermans board.

Pick n Pay was founded in 1967 by Ackerman and his wife Wendy after they bought four stores in Cape Town. The group now has over 2,000 outlets in South Africa and seven other African countries.

“From the outset, he lived by the core values that the customer is queen, that we must treat others as we would wish to be treated, and that doing good is good business,” the company said, adding that he was also a committed philanthropist.

“Raymond Ackerman was a man of the people; never too busy or too proud to make time for others. He remained humble throughout his life, and passionate about building a more just future for SA. He was an enduring optimist about SA’s future, and his passing leaves a great void for us all.”

Ackerman was also the first to introduce “no-name” food products and in-store banking. He will be noted for his continuing fight to de-regulate the price of petrol.

Pick ‘n Pay had a turnover of more than R1 billion by the time he stepped down as CEO in 1999. The retailing giant has a market cap of R17 billion with stores across South Africa and Southern Africa.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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