Businessman Aubrey Tau, founder of DStv channel Moja Love, plans to list his business on the JSE in the next two years. He also intends diversifying into new ventures, such as the pre-owned vehicle market and food industry.
Tau, who established Siyaya TV, which owns Moja Love, said: “We spend a lot of time shooting (Moja Love shows) in the townships and this has exposed us to some business opportunities that we want to explore. People have old cars in their yards that they don’t know what to do with. All they need is a platform from which to trade.”
He said the company will unlock this market and tailor it for township or rural buyers and sellers. Township-based mechanics will play an integral part in the venture.
“Through Moja Love we have built a loyal audience. We have realised people are suffering. We want to help where we can and through our new business ventures we may discover and uplift new entrepreneurs and help those who have started to grow their businesses,” Tau said.
Transaction Capital, which owns WeBuyCars, SA’s biggest used-car company, said in its financial results to end-September that the number of used vehicles traded continues to exceed the number of new vehicles traded by more than double as cash-strapped consumers scale down. Nedbank’s online marketplace Avo is also adding used cars to its portfolio.
Another growth opportunity for Tau is in agriculture, with the company establishing a platform to connect black farmers with buyers in mostly township and rural areas.
My biggest highlight was the CAF Awards. Even when I watch them on TV I beam with pride that I started them
— Aubrey Tau
“There are thousands of black farmers who are unable to gain access to markets, especially retail, and we believe that by establishing the platform we will be able to open doors for many of them,” he said.
Black farmers in South Africa face challenges in a sector that is still dominated by white people. In an interview with Business Times four months ago, former commissioner of the Competition Commission Tembinkosi Bonakele said revenue share for black farmers is still minuscule and in some instances declining as the value chain favours established entities. New entrants and small players are therefore being squeezed in favour of large producers who receive discounts and incentives.
Bonakele said these issues need to be addressed as they are linked to land reform. “If you give people land, the odds will be stacked against them [if these issues are not addressed].”
Tau, who has been in broadcasting for more than 20 years, said agriculture has huge growth potential for black entrepreneurs.
Speaking of listing, he said the plan is to establish a holding company which will be listed on the JSE to attract new shareholders, raise funds for expansion and increase black participation on the stock exchange.
Siyaya is working with investment experts, board members and former executives of its shareholders Bakgatla ba Kgafela, a North West-based royal family that is investing in businesses and industry to uplift Moruleng communities.
“We are working with experts who will guide us through this journey to make sure we tick all the boxes for listing.”
Little is known about Tau, who has kept a low profile while building his businesses. His early working life included a stint as a salesperson in a clothing store, before he was part of brokering a deal in the mid-1990s to buy Moroka Swallows soccer club. He then joined investors to secure a diamond mining licence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and chrome operations in South Africa. It was the mining venture, from which he was bought out, that allowed him to pursue his passion for broadcasting.
“One of the regrets is when I sold my shares in Siyanda Chrome JV, as the project is now worth more than R600m. I owned 5% and sold it for R2.6m in 2016. I needed money to invest in the TV project. It was so funny that this project introduced me to Kgosi Pilane (of Bakgatla ba Kgafela), who was looking at investing in a media business. The CEO of Siyanda Chrome, Lindani Mthwa, introduced me to Pilane,” Tau said.
“I am still interested in mining and agriculture, especially in Africa, as I believe there are lots of projects with huge potential. I like Zimbabwe and the DRC.”
Tau’s involvement in broadcasting started in the early 2000s, when he established African Soccer TV, a show that profiled the biggest names in African football. So successful was it that he later sold it to a broadcaster on the continent.
He then approached the Confederation of African Football (CAF) with a proposal to establish the CAF Awards, a project of which he is most proud. “My biggest highlight was the CAF Awards. Even when I watch them on TV I beam with pride that I started them.”
About 12 years ago he started SiyayaTV with the aim of bidding for a pay TV licence or as a new player in the digital migration programme, which was going to set aside channels for new entrants into digital terrestrial TV.
The project moved too slowly and is still incomplete; hence Siyaya tweaked its model. It secured a pay TV licence, but opted not to launch a stand-alone offering due to MultiChoice’s dominance and the high cost of manufacturing decoders, which it would have had to subsidise to attract consumers had it continued with the stand-alone offering. Instead, it opted to launch Moja Love.
I am still interested in mining and agriculture, especially in Africa, as I believe there are lots of projects with huge potential. I like Zimbabwe and the DRC
It has become one of the biggest local channels on DStv, with 5.6-million viewers, even though it has been criticised for degrading black people.
Tau is unfazed, saying to stand out Moja Love had to take content risks.
“Our content is real and educational. About 65% of our shows are solving problems. People come to us to assist with issues, be they relationships, family feuds over houses, deceased estates, alcohol and drug abuse or child maintenance. We work with experts like lawyers and social workers since our presenters do not have the professional qualifications to deal with such matters.”
He said there are plans to add more channels, including ones aimed at children, as there is gap for locally produced content in the market dominated by international productions.
Tau said as a businessman he has learnt not to focus on one project for too long. He said for more than 10 years he focused on SiyayaTV, which was not promising in the beginning.
“I worked on one project for too long. I was lucky be surrounded by people who believed in the project and today it is successful,” he said. The money he made from his stint in mining helped to keep him afloat, he added.
For two-and-a-half years, Moja Love attracted no advertising and survived on shareholders and bank loans. According to Tau, five years later, the channel is profitable and in April next year it will pay off its debt.
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