BOARD OF DIRECTORS
EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS
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Johan Enslin (36) Chief Executive Officer |
Johan was appointed chief executive officer of Lewis Group on
1 October 2009. He is responsible for all aspects of the group. Johan joined Lewis as a salesman in August 1993. He has, while climbing the ranks within the organisation, held various operational positions including Branch Manager, Regional Controller and Divisional General Manager. In 2002, he was made General Manager, Operations and with effect 1 April 2005, the operations director of Lewis Stores (Proprietary) Limited, being responsible for all facets of Lewis and Best Home and Electric store operations. On 1 April 2007, Johan Enslin was appointed chief operating officer and became responsible for the entire retail operations of the group. Johan was appointed chief executive officer designate on 10 November 2008. |
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Les Davies (54) CA (SA) Chief Financial Officer |
Les was appointed to the board of Lewis Group Limited on
1 April 2007 and has been the financial director of the main
subsidiary Lewis Stores (Proprietary) Limited since April 1989.
As Chief Financial Officer, his responsibilities include the full
accountability of all the group’s financial aspects. Les has over 30 years’ experience in financial management within the retail industry. Prior to joining Lewis Stores, Les spent five years as the Financial Director of AMC Classic (Proprietary) Limited. His experience covers a wide range of financial, administrative, legal, credit-related, insurance and statutory compliance matters. On 10 November 2008, Les was appointed chief executive officer of the group’s insurer, Monarch Insurance Company Limited (“Monarch”). He has been a director of Monarch for 15 years. |
NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS
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David Nurek (60) Diploma in Law Independent Non-executive Chairman of the Board and Chairman of Remuneration and Nomination Committee |
David Nurek has been associated with the Lewis Group for
over 20 years. He was appointed non-executive Chairman of
Lewis Stores (Proprietary) Limited in 2001 and as non-executive
Chairman of the Board of Lewis Group on 15 July 2004. David practised as a commercial attorney at Sonnenberg Hoffmann Galombik for more than 30 years, ultimately serving as Chairperson. In July 2000, he moved to Investec Bank and took up the position of Regional Chairman Western Cape, Investec Group. He also serves on the boards of, amongst others: New Clicks Holdings Limited, Foschini Limited and Sun International Limited. David was appointed to the board of Monarch on 23 July 2007. |
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Hilton Saven (57) BCom, CA(SA) Independent Non-executive Director and Chairman of Audit and Risk Committee |
Hilton Saven was appointed as an independent non-executive
director of Lewis Group on 22 June 2004. Hilton is a Chartered Accountant and has pursued a career in the accounting profession since 1975 with the firm Mazars Moores Rowland, currently being the Senior Partner of the Cape Town practice and chairman of Mazars Moores Rowland South Africa. Hilton’s varied professional experience across numerous sectors enables him to add substantial value in relation to the Lewis Group’s accounting and financial disclosure obligation in relation to corporate governance and communication with shareholders. He is the independent non-executive chairman of Truworths International Limited. Hilton Saven was appointed as a director to the board of Monarch on 3 November 2008 and was also appointed the Chairman of Monarch’s Audit and Risk Committee on that date. |
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Ben van der Ross (63)
Diploma in Law
Independent Non-executive Director |
Ben van der Ross was appointed as an independent non-executive
director of Lewis Group on 22 June 2004. Ben practised as an attorney for 18 years and continues to consult for Van Der Ross Motala attorneys. He has been a director of the Urban Foundation, a director and later deputy CEO of the South African Rail Commuter Corporation Limited and Business South Africa. He was a commissioner of the Independent Electoral Commission for the first democratic elections in South Africa in 1994. Ben is currently appointed to the boards of among others: Naspers Limited, FirstRand Limited, Pick n Pay Stores Limited and Momentum Group Limited. |
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Professor Fatima Abrahams (47) BEcon (Hons), MComm, DComm Independent Non-executive Director and Chairperson of the Transformation Committee |
Professor Fatima Abrahams was appointed as an independent
non-executive director of the Board of Lewis Group and
its Remuneration and Nomination Committee on
1 September 2005. She is the chairperson of the company’s
Transformation Committee. Fatima is currently a professor in the department of Industrial Psychology at the University of Western Cape and is the chairperson of TSIBA Education, a non-profit private higher educational institution. She is also a consultant in the human resources field. Currently, Fatima serves on the boards of Foschini Group Limited and New Clicks Holdings Limited as a non-executive director. |
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Alan Smart (65)
Non-executive Officer |
Alan Smart retired on 30 September 2009 as Chief Executive
Officer of the group, the position he held since 1991. Alan
has accepted the invitation of the Board to continue as a
non-executive director. Accordingly, his invaluable service and
experience will not be lost to the group. He is also a member of
the Remuneration and Nomination Committee and attends the
Audit and Risk Committee by invitation. Alan joined Lewis in 1969. During this period, he has held various financial and operational positions including Credit Director between 1981 and 1984 and Joint Managing Director between 1984 and 1991. From 1995, in addition to his South African responsibilities, he was appointed Chairman of GUS Canada Inc., a retail furniture group of 65 stores in eastern Canada and oversaw a turnaround programme. |
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Sizakele “Za” Marutlulle (42) MA (Sociology) Independent Non-executive Director |
Sizakele Marutlulle was appointed as an independent director on
1 October 2009. Sizakele has worked in the media industry for over 17 years. She has held the position of chief operating officer of South Africa Tourism, deputy managing director of Hardbuoys McCann Erikson and co-founding the creative shop Lowe BCP and Partners. Sizakele is currently the chief executive officer of Moonchild which aims to lift the quality of multi-cultural communications and marketing. She is a non-executive director of VWV Group South Africa and serves as a member of the Marketing Excellence Council and Brand Advisory Board. |
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Zarina Bassa (45) CA(SA) Independent Non-Executive Director |
Zarina Bassa was appointed as an independent non-executive
director and as a member of the Audit and Risk Committee on
1 October 2009. Zarina joined Ernst and Young in 1986, qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1988 and was appointed a partner in 1996. In 1998, she was appointed chief operating officer responsible for the co-ordination of Ernst and Young’s accounting practices in sub-Sahara Africa. In 2005, Zarina joined the ABSA Group as an executive director of the Private Banking division and Executive Committee member. After leading ABSA Private Bank for three years, Zarina took up a strategic governance role within the group as Vice Chairperson of ABSA Retail Bank and continues to serve on a number of the boards of subsidiaries within the ABSA Group. She is currently a member of the advisory board to the University of Stellenbosch Business School (USB) and is a non-executive director of BMF and the National Business Institute (NBI). |