Key Stakeholder Announcement

I am delighted to announce that Private Property has successfully concluded the purchase of the Property Buyer Show, which can rightfully claim to be South Africa's most innovative property expo. The transaction became effective on 1 February.

This is a particularly significant development in the upward trajectory of this company, and I would like to spend a little time sketching the thinking behind this move.

The Property Buyer Show brings together all the role-players in the industry under one roof-including, most importantly, buyers. This is particularly important for us for two interrelated reasons.

It allows us to connect with our customers, current and future, in the real world.

This may sound somewhat strange coming from an online company, yet it is critical that we open up a variety of channels to reach our customers. The online channel has been so successful because it is so efficient and saves buyers time. It remains somewhat impersonal and is (by design) a largely transactional environment. The expo provides us with an opportunity to connect at a more individual level with buyers and other members of our ecosystem, while gaining priceless information that will enable us to get a better understanding of market needs.

Truly innovative online companies have begun to realise the importance of integrating their offerings, and the experience they offer customers, with the real world, particularly when product is involved. This is particularly true for real estate, of course.

It provides a golden opportunity to nurture and "own" the next generation of property buyers.

We are in real estate because we understand that it is the foundation of wealth and prosperity, both for individuals and countries. South Africa is a country where a large proportion of the population does not yet own property. This presents us with favourable circumstances to empower and strengthen our brand identity with the growing numbers of our people who are emerging into what we can broadly call the middle class, and are looking to take their first step on the property ladder. This market-and it is expanding, despite everything-is a huge opportunity for a company that understands what it needs.

We are that company.

We understand that these are first-time buyers with limited financial resources and, more importantly, little knowledge of the complexities involved in buying, financing and maintaining property. They need a fair measure of education before our online, transactional channel will become useful to them. The expo is crucial because it provides the platform in which we can interact with this distinct and growing market. It creates a true one-stop shop in which prospective homeowners and investors can interact with the banks, real estate agencies, developers and conveyancers that will help them through the process. It offers unique education opportunities, such as the 'First Time Buyer Theatre' and a 'Property Investor Theatre' where visitors can attend workshops and talks on buying property and building wealth through property.

Of course, over time, we will develop and refine the expo's offerings to serve this market better.

Taking a step back, we should all realise just how much this will disrupt the property market in South Africa. It closes the gap between the virtual and real-world channels, allowing us to combine the personal and transactional elements of the property ecosystem. Over the longer term, it has the immense potential to create the platform in which we can address the needs of a growing, largely unserved market segment.

This acquisition opens up massive opportunity for us. I look forward to working with you all to seize it, and to shape the future of real estate in South Africa.