Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa February/ March 2020 | Page 13

ALAN VAN DER WESTHUIZEN
ALAN’S PERSONAL GOALS
1. Climb Kilimanjaro
2. Grow a network of successful, profitable
IWG franchisees that share in our values
and growth strategy.
3. Partner in a sustainable working farm,
that has a structured agricultural
program to teach young kids how to
farm
4. Cycle around Ireland
5. Get off the grid
IWG has launched its franchise offering based on its proven
business model with over 30-years experience and leading
global brands like Regus and Spaces. It’s an opportunity to
diversify away from traditional franchise industries, while
benefiting from strong cash returns with access to over 2.5
million customers, and relying on a strong partner to maximise
your investment. IWG is a strong and stable business partner,
with sound investment capabilities. The company is listed on
the London Stock Exchange (LSE: IWG) and is profitable.
“Plant that tree, even if you
know that you will never sit in
its shade.”
Among some of its projects and opportunities in South
Africa, IWG is certain that many prospective franchisees are
close to securing their first franchise business centres in
Pretoria East, KZN, Eastern Cape and in the Western Cape.
“We continue developing the business, worldwide and in
South Africa in particular. Our goal is to give employees and
employers alike access to flexible workspace wherever they are,
so they can be more productive while enjoying a better work/life
balance, less commuting and therefore less pollution. So, you can
count the great development of our network through franchising.”
Indeed, the property sector is seeing the rise of coworking
spaces on a global scale too. “Real estate giant, JLL, estimates
that up to 30% of corporate real estate could be flexible
workspace by 2030,” says van der Westhuizen. He adds that,
“the flexible work industry is estimated to be growing by 24%
each year. It is estimated that by 2020, 50% of all workers will
be remote most of the time and that in 2022 the global mobile
workforce will be 1.87 billion people.”
It is important that one seeks to pierce through their goals
and succeed, something that van der Westhuizen managed
to do perfectly. He has managed to grow a single site café
brand into a 30-outlet franchise brand with an annual turnover
with excess of R300 million, and packaging the brand to be
exported into various emerging markets outside of SA. For
motivation to grow in business Alan shares his life philosophy, “Plant
that tree, even if you know that you will never sit in its shade.”
“The big change we need as a community starts with one
small change as individuals. A small change in the way we
consume and a small change in the way we do business can
collectively make a big difference in the impact that we make
in our communities. I would like to believe that my small
contribution and our company’s offering can revolutionise
the way people do business to become more efficient, stay
competitive and maximise profits whilst creating a better.”
SOURCES Flexjobs.com, Strategy Analytics, IWG
Get inspired by the biggest names in property
Join us on REIM TV as we interview
master investors such as
Sol Kerzner, Robert Kiyosaki, and
Christo Wiese to name a few
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SA Real Estate Investor Magazine FEBRUARY/MARCH 2020
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