MASTER INVESTOR PROFILE
“ We advertised the portal all over campus through posters , and students immediately took to it ! From those humble beginnings the business evolved , eventually morphing into a fully-fledged property portal . Later , we offered template-based websites for estate agencies , and attracted over 100 agency clients . We continued running the business for a few years after graduating from university , and it was this success that ignited my passion for using technology to transform the outdated methods of the traditional real estate industry .”
Agency of change
Between 2003 and 2004 , the residential property market in South Africa really took off , especially in areas around Stellenbosch . In 2004 , while continuing with the website business on the side , Antonie and his brother decided that they wanted in on the action so they both joined a local real estate company as agents .
“ Although I worked with a lovely bunch of people , I knew in my gut that the property industry was on the cusp of major change . The traditional model , which in a way is very unfair towards the agent in the field , I believed was about to change .”
" I wanted Meridian Realty to be at the forefront of those changes , and I was obsessed with building the agency I would want to partner with as a real estate agent .”
In October 2005 , Anotonie and his brother made the bold move to launch their own real estate agency and Meridian Realty was born . “ I wanted to create a business model where agents could partner under a bigger umbrella , have access to world class marketing and support services , and have a support team that takes care of the compliance and regulatory requirements .
22 SEPTEMBER 2022 SA Real Estate Investor Magazine