Retail Capital CEO Karl Westvig is one of South Africa’s top experts on money and credit and has played an intrinsic role in shaping the local credit industry as we know it today.
Equipped with honours in Statistics from the University of Cape Town, Westvig began his credit story at the Foschini’s RCS group in the mid-90s. As managing director of the group, he grew RCS to 800 employees with over 600 000 clients in no time, with a product line that included direct personal loans, general-purpose cards, home loans, vehicle finance, insurance and private label cards. Today, the avid entrepreneur is at the helm of Retail Capital, where he guides small business owners towards making smart money and growth decisions. Westvig started Retail Capital out of a love for the local entrepreneurial eco-system and continues to grow the sector by helping small businesses across South Africa to achieve their own success.
In this conversation with Heavy Chef CEO Fred Roed, Karl shares:
- His journey and how he came to be one of SA’s top minds on money and credit.
- A loose history of credit in SA, which he’s been an integral part of.
- Advice on when an entrepreneur should bring credit into a business strategy.
- The business risk that is Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and how to mitigate against it.
- How he defines the role of a CEO, particularly in his current position.
This edition of The Heavy Chef Show is brought to you by the following partners:
Xero Cloud Accounting - because accounting can also be beautiful
Workshop17 - collaborative workspaces, work anytime, anywhere
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