The Ackerman family will give up its controlling stake in Pick n Pay, after being in charge for nearly 60 years.
Pick n Pay announced this week that the family would relinquish its controlling stake after a rights offer.
Chair of the board, Gareth Ackerman, was quoted as saying: ‘The Ackerman family has for some time been considering the changing operating environment and the need for renewal at Pick n Pay, including at board level. To quote a favourite expression of my father, “We need to listen to the whispers of tomorrow”. The difficulty the business has found itself in recently has proved an opportune moment to accelerate the renewal process.’
Ackerman will step down as chair but will remain on the board, along with two of his siblings.
Pick n Pay was founded by Raymond Ackerman in Cape Town in 1967. It now has stores in seven African countries, employs 90 000 people, and in 2023 had revenue of over R100 billion.
In the last year it has seen its share price decline by over 30% and according to some sources is technically insolvent.