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Luft Industries Natal
Anton Jansen : pondering a deserved retirement
Dean Jansen , new managing director of the business . order out in time . My boss then agreed to let me do some of the overflow manufacturing and complete other similar orders . That turned into supplying several clients and soon the realisation of expanding the business . After that I was appointed to the board and offered shares sometime in the early 80s .”
Fastforwarding to the early 90s , Luft Industries underwent a name change and that was to their detriment as the company was well established in South Africa and Namibia and was speculatively the largest fans and ventilation supplier in several regions . The company subsequently changed ownership twice and their sub divisions were sold too . The Cape Town and Johannesburg branches were shut down but Durban remained .
Just as things started to look as though they were smoothing out , Jansen was yet again faced with more potholes in the journey as he was taken down a road where he had to give up his shares and directorship which in hindsight he noted was “ somewhat of a blessing in disguise ”.
During the next four years he started to experience his first trials of business and was subjected to several failed business transactions , payment issues , merger deals , takeovers and questionable management dealings and ethically poor decisions – both locally and via certain international partners . It was unfortunate that those trials at the end of the day almost landed him without employment .
Jansen ’ s offers of further employment then took several other turns but he landed up buying out the Durban branch and re-establishing it under Luft Industries Natal ( to continue the well known name of the brand in the region ) and he was afforded a six month period to pay off the loan that basically included vehicles and computers and the office contents , and so on . Again , as if things had not been rough enough to date , he was faced with further turmoil after settling the loan with more technicalities around distribution agreements and legalities following . Nevertheless , the
www . refrigerationandaircon . co . za RACA Journal I February 2023 7