TOPLINE Amazon is preparing to make a $9 billion investment in the company’s film and television offerings by purchasing vaunted Hollywood studio&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2021/05/24/amazon-reportedly-close-to-buying-mgm-for-nearly-9-billion/?sh=74c23a063d4c">MGM</a>, the&nbsp;Wall Street Journal&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/amazon-nears-deal-to-buy-hollywood-studio-mgm-11621880759?mod=hp_lead_pos1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>&nbsp;Monday, the latest in a string of major acquisitions the company has made to boost its standing in even more areas of people’s lives—here are the most notable:



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h3>



Amazon’s largest acquisition to date was when it&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/business-40306099" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">purchased</a>&nbsp;Whole Foods in 2017 for $13.7 billion.



The company has also spent more than a billion dollars on shoe ecommerce giant&nbsp;<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2009/11/02/amazon-closes-zappos-deal-ends-up-paying-1-2-billion/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Zappos</a>&nbsp;($1.2 billion in 2009) and autonomous vehicle company&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/tomtaulli/2020/06/27/amazon-buys-zoox-why-self-driving-technology-is-existential/?sh=7714dde17c0f">Zoox</a>, which is&nbsp;<a href="https://zoox.com/about/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">developing</a>&nbsp;a self-driving rideshare service ($1.2 billion in 2020).



Other pricey acquisitions include smart doorbell maker&nbsp;<a href="https://www.geekwire.com/2019/new-filing-amazon-spent-1-65b-acquisitions-2018-headlined-ring-pillpack-deals/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ring</a>&nbsp;($839 million in 2018), online pharmacist PillPack ($753 million in 2018), video game streaming platform&nbsp;<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-buys-twitch-2014-8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Twitch</a>&nbsp;($970 million in 2014), robotics company&nbsp;<a href="https://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/03/19/amazon-com-buys-kiva-systems-for-775-million/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kiva Systems</a>&nbsp;($775 million in 2012) and&nbsp;<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2010/11/08/confirmed-amazon-spends-545-million-on-diapers-com-parent-quidsi/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Quidsi</a>, the parent company of Diapers.com and other ecommerce sites ($545 million in 2010).



Amazon has invested in its cloud computing arm Amazon Web Services—which now makes up the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/interactive/2021/amazon-apple-facebook-google-acquisitions/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">majority</a>&nbsp;of the company’s operating income—by purchasing more than a dozen companies in that sector, including $500 million for mobile video service&nbsp;<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2015/09/03/amazon-acquires-elemental-technologies-for-a-reported-500-million-in-cash/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Elemental Technologies</a>&nbsp;in 2018 and $20 million for cyber security startup&nbsp;<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2017/01/09/amazon-aws-harvest-ai/?ncid=rss&amp;utm_source=feedburner&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Techcrunch+%28TechCrunch%29&amp;sr_share=twitter" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">harvest.ai</a>&nbsp;in 2017.



In addition to its expected MGM purchase, Amazon has also invested in the film industry by acquiring&nbsp;<a href="https://venturebeat.com/2015/10/30/25-years-of-imdb-the-worlds-biggest-online-movie-database/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">IMDB</a>&nbsp;(purchased in 1998 as part of a $55 million acquisition with two other companies), DVD rental service&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/9aa7315e-2482-11e0-8c0e-00144feab49a" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Lovefilm</a>&nbsp;(for £200 million or approximately $317 million in 2011) and film grosses website&nbsp;<a href="https://variety.com/2008/digital/news/imdb-links-up-with-box-office-mojo-1117997423/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Box Office Mojo</a>&nbsp;(in 2008 for an undisclosed amount).



Amazon has strengthened its foothold in the book industry where it got its start by acquiring companies like audiobook seller&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/amazon-acquires-audible-for-300-million/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audible</a>&nbsp;($300 million in 2008), social network&nbsp;<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2013/03/28/amazon-acquires-social-reading-site-goodreads/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Goodreads</a>&nbsp;(in 2013 for an undisclosed amount), book publisher&nbsp;<a href="https://money.cnn.com/2012/06/04/technology/amazon-avalon-books/index.htm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Avalon Books</a>&nbsp;(in 2012 for an undisclosed amount) and used bookseller&nbsp;<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2008/08/01/amazon-to-acquire-abebooks/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">AbeBooks</a>&nbsp;(in 2008 for an undisclosed amount).



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h3>



“Amazon has an inventive, customer-obsessed, long-term oriented culture where entrepreneurs thrive,” an Amazon spokesperson said in an emailed statement to&nbsp;Forbes, adding the company helps those it acquires “to accelerate their businesses and delight customers with the help of Amazon’s resources and technology.” “We operate in a diverse range of businesses, from retail and entertainment to consumer electronics and technology services, and have thriving, well-established competition in each of these areas,” the spokesperson noted.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chief-critic">CHIEF CRITIC</h3>



Amazon and other tech giants’ acquisition practices have been criticized by lawmakers, who have accused the companies of practicing anti-competitive behavior by buying up smaller rivals. “As gatekeepers to the digital economy, these platforms enjoy the power to pick winners and losers, shake down small businesses, and enrich themselves while choking off competitors,” Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.), who chairs the House Antitrust Subcommittee,&nbsp;<a href="https://cicilline.house.gov/press-release/cicilline-opening-statement-big-tech-antitrust-hearing" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;in his opening statement for a hearing concerning Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google. “Their ability to dictate terms, call the shots, upend entire sectors, and inspire fear represent the powers of a private government.” Amazon has&nbsp;<a href="https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/policy-news-views/statement-by-jeff-bezos-to-the-u-s-house-committee-on-the-judiciary" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">denied</a>&nbsp;the antitrust allegations against it and maintains that it competes with other platforms like eBay, Etsy, Walmart and Target and brick and mortar stores worldwide, noting the platform’s sales make up less than 4% of U.S. retail.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h3>



Sources cited by the&nbsp;Journal&nbsp;say a deal between Amazon and MGM could be finalized as early as this week, though nothing has yet been finalized and “there are no guarantees they will ultimately reach an agreement.” Should the deal go through, MGM’s library would substantially bolster Amazon’s streaming platform by giving it access to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/amazon-acquire-mgm-1234954655/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">thousands</a>&nbsp;of additional film and television titles, helping Amazon Prime better compete with other streaming powerhouses like Netflix. MGM’s century-long history dates back to the silent era, giving Amazon access to films like the&nbsp;James Bond&nbsp;franchise and&nbsp;Rocky&nbsp;films and newer properties like&nbsp;The Handmaid’s Tale&nbsp;television series. (Golden Age classics made at the studio before 1948 like&nbsp;The Wizard of Oz&nbsp;and&nbsp;Gone with the Wind&nbsp;have already been sold to Warner Bros, however, the&nbsp;Journal&nbsp;notes.) The reported $9 billion deal comes after MGM was most recently valued at $5.5 billion in December, the&nbsp;Journal&nbsp;reports, though its stock price has soared in response to news of the expected deal.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h3>



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2021/05/24/amazon-reportedly-close-to-buying-mgm-for-nearly-9-billion/?sh=74c23a063d4c">Amazon Reportedly Close To Buying MGM For Nearly $9 Billion</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/amazon-nears-deal-to-buy-hollywood-studio-mgm-11621880759" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Amazon Nears Deal to Buy Hollywood Studio MGM</a>&nbsp;(Wall Street Journal)



<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/interactive/2021/amazon-apple-facebook-google-acquisitions/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">How Big Tech got so big: Hundreds of acquisitions</a>&nbsp;(Washington Post)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/dawnchmielewski/2021/01/30/mgms-back-on-the-block-and-floating-a-10-billion-price-tag-dont-count-on-it/?sh=7f1cb80eb740">MGM’s Back On The Block And Floating A $10 Billion Price Tag. Don’t Count On It.</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



By Alison Durkee, Forbes Staff

Amazon Package Deliveries On Prime Day

Amazon’s Biggest Acquisitions Have Allowed It To Become A Marketplace For Nearly Everything

TOPLINE Embattled co-working giant WeWork lost $2.1 billion and more than one in four of its customers during the first quarter, according to the Financial Times, as the coronavirus pandemic and a nine-figure settlement with former CEO Adam Neumann placed strain on the company as it prepares a second try at going public later this year.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h3>



The company’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/60ea2f72-586f-4f3e-b153-3455b93539b8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">revenue fell by half</a>&nbsp;compared to the first quarter last year, according to the&nbsp;FT, dropping from $1.1 billion to $598 million as it shed 200,000 customers, accounting for roughly a quarter of its membership.



The first-quarter losses also include Neumann’s settlement earlier this year, which saw the ousted founder walk away with about&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-softbank-group-wework-settlement/softbank-announces-settlement-with-former-wework-ceo-neumann-idUSKBN2AQ34U?il=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$500 million</a>, according to media reports.



WeWork outspent itself as the company shuttered unprofitable locations: Between the first quarter of 2020 and the first quarter of 2021,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/60ea2f72-586f-4f3e-b153-3455b93539b8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">restructuring-related costs</a>&nbsp;swelled from $56 million to $494 million, according to the&nbsp;FT.



WeWork hopes the one-time expenses to unload locations will help the company meet its goal of profitability, and told potential investors in March that&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/60ea2f72-586f-4f3e-b153-3455b93539b8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">annual revenues would soar</a>&nbsp;as coronavirus infections slow down, estimating that the company would go from earning $3.2 billion in 2020 to a staggering $7 billion by 2024, according to the&nbsp;FT.



The firm’s tough quarter comes as new CEO Sandeep Mathrani&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/60ea2f72-586f-4f3e-b153-3455b93539b8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">cuts costs</a>&nbsp;to prepare for a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahhansen/2021/03/26/wework-will-go-public-via-spac-deal-at-9-billion-valuation-less-than-20-of-its-2019-softbank-valuation/?sh=1f838fc234eb">second shot at going public</a>&nbsp;later this year via a SPAC merger with BowX Acquisition Corp.



WeWork said the company would be valued at $9 billion, including debt, with the SPAC deal that would include&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahhansen/2021/03/26/wework-will-go-public-via-spac-deal-at-9-billion-valuation-less-than-20-of-its-2019-softbank-valuation/?sh=1f838fc234eb">a $483 million investment</a>&nbsp;from BowX.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h3>



WeWork’s first-quarter cash fall is only the latest stumbling block for the company. In 2019, WeWork’s first attempt at going public failed after the company pulled its<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2019/09/17/wework-delays-20-billion-ipo-as-valuation-plunges/?sh=7c8644cb58ff">&nbsp;$20 billion initial public offering</a>&nbsp;at the last second, sending the valuation tumbling. Neumann stepped down later in 2019, and sued the company he founded the following year after SoftBank, WeWork’s largest shareholder, tried to back out of a $3 billion deal to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelsandler/2021/02/26/wework-founder-adam-neumann-softbank-reach-settlement-in-legal-battle/?sh=d78fb6379e70">buy WeWork shares</a>&nbsp;from Neumann and other early employees. In 2021, the coronavirus pandemic and ensuing lockdowns battered the company even further as much of the world’s workforce worked from home.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h3>



<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/60ea2f72-586f-4f3e-b153-3455b93539b8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">WeWork loses $2.1bn and a quarter of its members as lockdowns bite</a>&nbsp;(Financial Times)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahhansen/2021/03/26/wework-will-go-public-via-spac-deal-at-9-billion-valuation-less-than-20-of-its-2019-softbank-valuation/?sh=1f838fc234eb">WeWork Will Go Public Via SPAC Deal At $9 Billion Valuation—Less Than 20% Of Its 2019 SoftBank Valuation</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelsandler/2021/02/26/wework-founder-adam-neumann-softbank-reach-settlement-in-legal-battle/?sh=5899c67279e7">WeWork Founder Adam Neumann, Softbank Reach Settlement In Legal Battle</a> (Forbes)



By Carlie Porterfield, Forbes Staff

WeWork Presents Creator Awards Global Finals At The Theater At Madison Square Garden – Inside

WeWork Reportedly Lost More Than $2 Billion In 1st Quarter

“I don’t want to go to college anymore; I want to be a YouTube star.” When Nikita Kopotun’s  younger brother, Denis, shared his dream of  becoming a full-time Roblox streamer at 17, he wanted to help. Having just completed an internship at Cisco in China, the Queen’s University engineering student used the connections he’d made with Shanghai factories to manufacture stuffed animals Denis could sell to fans and help his brother turn a profit. Five years later, Denis has 9 million YouTube followers and banks seven-figures a year, while Kopotun has got a business: Juniper, an ecommerce company that partners with influencers to manufacture merchandise to promote their brands.



“We believe influencers represent the next era of commerce,” says Kopotun, who made the&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;30 Under 30 list in 2021. “Brands can’t just be built off t-shirts and hoodies so we want to sell flexible supply chain infrastructure to these creators.”



Chief Revenue Officer Kopotun, 26, and his cofounders—CEO Joel Wegner, Chief Culture Officer Will Cartar and CTO Ryan Wong—launched Toronto-based Juniper in 2016. Today, the bootstrapped brand’s 50 employees work with 60 influencers, including ZHC who has over 19 million YouTube subscribers. Juniper finds their most profitable clients publish long-form YouTube videos that earn them at least $500,000 a year. The company partners with them to create custom products and takes a cut of sales. Juniper generated $31 million in revenue in 2020, up 345% from $9 million in 2019, as consumers increasingly shopped, and sought out entertainment, online due to the pandemic.&nbsp;



While the company is headquartered in Canada, its manufacturers are based in China, where a team of 30 mass produce merchandise—from Denis’ tie-wearing cat plushy Sir Meows A Lot, to InquisitorMaster’s floppy-eared furry onesies, to Lanky Box’s cartoon-printed bedding bundle—and within a month of influencers inking a deal. Retail giants like Mattel rarely collaborate with influencers—and when they do, it’s typically with celebrities like Britney Spears—while DIY platforms like Custom Ink and Teespring don’t offer the same level of customization. Selling custom merchandise offers influencers  another way of monetizing their fanbases. This has enabled many of Juniper’s clients to double or triple their revenues each year. 



For influencers, Juniper’s products can serve as a launchpad. This past year, Denis’ Sir Meows A Lot became the protagonist of a YouTube cartoon series with nearly 1 million subscribers. “The designs and branding that Juniper did changed the way my channel looked,” he says. “It’s so easy to make any product by just slapping a logo on it, but to make products that characters very specific to that creator’s audience is so much more valuable.”



Unlike his influencer clients, who grew up on the internet, Kopotun spent most of his childhood in studios training to be an elite ballet dancer. He was sidelined at 17 with tendonitis in his knee, but believes his training has set him up for success as a founder. “I learned a lot about personal rigor and work ethics which has transitioned really well into business,” he says.



That tenacity has earned him clients like Jack Douglas, an influencer whose YouTube video series,&nbsp;Yesterday I Asked You, has garnered 92 million views. He partnered with Juniper after the company cold emailed him a plan to create a board game based on his show. “All I’ve wanted to do for years now is to take&nbsp;YIAY&nbsp;and diversity into games,” says Douglas. “Having&nbsp;YIAY&nbsp;exist as a board game wouldn’t have happened without Juniper.” In addition to the board game, scheduled to be released this spring, the two have also produced a plushy version of Douglas’ toy American Eskimo, Klondike.&nbsp;



Despite the growth Kopotun has seen this past year, he isn’t resting on his laurels. His goal is to transform Juniper into a tech platform that enables influencers to set up stores and sell custom products without the help of customer support representatives. He hopes that this platform—as well as a refined manufacturing process to produce more orders and of different sizes, allowing Juniper to serve smaller influencers—will be ready to launch in early 2022. “What we really want to be doing is supporting all sorts of brands and extending ourselves to the bottom 99% of creators,”  says Kopotun. “We believe that we’ll be able to hit unicorn status in the coming years by building this out.”



By Alexandra Sternlicht, Forbes Staff

1602605560067

Meet The Company Making $31 Million A Year Helping Influencers Build Their Brands With Custom Merch

“What would you say if I showed up barefoot and without a belt?” asks Reginald Mengi, one of the richest men in Africa, as we discuss attire for the photo shoot for his interview with FORBES AFRICA in Johannesburg, South Africa.
It could have been a great headline: Millionaire Barefoot and Beltless. Alas, he suffered cold feet and came dressed up to the nines in designer shoes with an Italian navy-blue pinstripe suit and a belt, of course.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-26944" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/High-res1.jpg" alt="" width="768" height="991" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/High-res1.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/High-res1-300x387.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/High-res1-600x774.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/High-res1-232x300.jpg 232w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
Walking without shoes is nothing new for the media tycoon, from Dar es Salaam, who’s worth an estimated $550 million, according to FORBES.
He’s a simple man, bound closely to his roots in the village, who enjoys plain language and has a story for everything.
Mengi grew up in Machame, near Kilimanjaro, in northern Tanzania. His parents, both farmers, owned a little plot of land where the family of eight lived in poverty.
“We lived in a mud hut with two cows, three sheep and a few chickens. Nothing more than that in terms of what my family was worth because we just couldn’t make ends meet… We couldn’t afford food and when we got two meals a day it was a great celebration.”
Mengi wanted more than two meals a day and took drastic action. In Form Five, with one year left of high school, he earned a scholarship to study corporate accounting at a college in Glasgow, Scotland.
“I couldn’t tell my headmaster that I won a scholarship to go to [Britain], halfway through Form Five, so I ran away from school.”
Everyone tried to convince him to stay, but his mind was made up. He flew from Moshi to Glasgow, via Nairobi and London. Mengi always thought the streets of London were paved with gold but when he got there he realized the truth.
“I saw a beggar in the street, a white beggar, and after that I said, ‘You know what? Even London has many things like home.”
In Scotland, it wasn’t the history, the whisky or the glimpse of the Loch Ness Monster that impressed him. It was the warmth of the people.
At college, in Glasgow, Mengi had a change of heart. He no longer wanted to become an articled clerk. He informed his sponsors who told him he had to stay in Scotland for the six months as it had been paid for.
So Mengi stayed, abandoned the course, took night classes and finished high school instead. During the day, he worked many jobs, from a bus conductor to cleaner, to make ends meet.
“I wouldn’t turn it down because it’s too dirty or the money is too little. My question is the alternative: If I work I get $1; if I don’t do it I get nothing… $1 is better than nothing.”
A year and a half later, Mengi, who had finally found his feet, received devastating news from home. His father had died. Mengi was stuck 7,000 miles away with no money to go home.
“The biggest regret I had was he passed away without me being able to show him that I’ve been able to make it in life and do something for him to say, ‘Well that’s my son.’ That I regret. I wish he had just lived on for a while for me to go back and say ‘daddy you know what, I’ve been able to do it and let me now be by your side.’ That eats me up even to today,” says Mengi as he pulls a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe away tears.
After high school, Cooper Brothers, now Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC), offered Mengi a job where he completed his articles. He climbed the ranks, became a member of the institute for chartered accountants for England and Wales but he yearned for home. After nine years away, Mengi transferred to the Nairobi office. It was one of the shortest careers in history; after a few hours, he resigned.
“I wanted to be in Tanzania. I knew I could make more money in [Britain] but I wanted to be back home. I wanted to go back to do something for my people. I was educated by poor Tanzanians and I thought it would be a good thing to give back.”
After a year in Moshi, Mengi moved to PWC back home in Dar es Salaam. He worked hard and, at the age of 30, became one of the youngest partners in the corporation. At the height of his career at PWC, Mengi, who was the chairman and managing partner, resigned.
“Some people leave their jobs when things are bad; but I left mine when things were really good. I couldn’t wait until things got bad and then left. You change when things are really good and you go into the new job with a big kind of energy rather than going there totally depressed because you had been sucked [dry] or you were not doing that well.”
Mengi dreamed of running a big business but understood that he had to start small. Everywhere he looked he saw suffering in the then socialist society and shortages of almost everything. His first bright idea came on the day he went to buy a pen and couldn’t find one. He decided to become a purveyor of pens. With the help of a friend he found a pen manufacturer in Kenya who shipped the parts to start his business.
“When the components arrived I didn’t know where to put them, so the best place was my bedroom and it was in that bedroom that I started the assembly of the pens.”
It was a big change from PWC where Mengi had a large office, staff and a company house. Now he worked 16-hour days, downgraded his car from a Peugeot 504 to a Peugeot 104 and also delivered on foot.
“That little business gave me my first million dollars,” he says.
Mengi sharpened his eye for opportunity. He sold shoe polish, made from ground charcoal and oil, and a natural skin exfoliator, which was simply bottled sea mud. He was on a roll and made anything he could: toilet paper, soap, detergent, beds, shoes and toothpaste.
“At that time, I made sure that no one in Tanzania could spend a day without coming into contact or touching one of my products… the only thing I couldn’t do at that time was the air you breathe.”
It was news that brought him his greatest success. In 1994, he launched his first newspaper, The Guardian, and a year later came Tanzania’s first television network, ITV. He did it all with no journalism experience. His media ventures were formed under the IPP Group, where Mengi holds sole ownership.
“We launched five years before government TV. There was a law in Tanzania not allowing television, it was government censorship… When I came with my network it was operating, on one hand, to report as if it was national television, but on the other hand it was private television.”
Mengi now owns eight newspapers, three radio stations and three television networks and has more than 1,000 people working for him. The only time he gets worried is when the politicians are not.
“If you start being praised by politicians… then you must be careful, there must be something wrong that you are doing. To be criticized is healthy; it means you are doing your job well in the media.”
Besides his interests in media, Mengi is also involved in mining and bottling for the Coca Cola Company. In business, that set him against his friend, Mohammed Dewji – also among the richest in Africa – who is trying to take on the world’s biggest name: Coca Cola. It was a move that proved a business disaster for Richard Branson when he launched Virgin Cola.
“One thing I really think is fantastic is competition. I think it’s good for you as a business person. It’s also good for the customers. If he came to me for advice, I would advise him to move even faster because without competition you are not going to grow.”
When it comes to media in Africa, Mengi says although free speech is ideal, it comes with limits. Surprisingly, he doesn’t blame international media for the often gloomy picture the world paints of Africa.
“The images you see in the western media, many of them come from the African journalists. But African journalists should bear one thing in mind; there are two sides to a story…  If you are an African journalist and you do not see the beautiful side of Africa, you only see the bad and write negative things, then you are not being responsible.”
Among the negative stories written about Africa is corruption, both in politics and business. Mengi says the reasons people don’t speak out is they are corrupt or they are perceived to be corrupt, therefore they are scared to open their mouths and talk about corruption for the fear that they may lose contracts and contacts. Mengi is known for his tough stance on corruption. In 2005, he launched two newspapers, ThisDay and Kulikoni, aimed at shedding light on corruption – often the reason why people are poor.
“For a long time we’ve been saying Africa is poor but that’s wrong. Africa as a continent is not poor; it’s the people who are poor. Instead of saying Africa is poor we should open our eyes that Africa as a continent is very rich, but of course, people are poor.”
Mengi speaks of countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo that have an estimated $24 trillion worth of untapped minerals. To him, it doesn’t make sense that a country so rich should be seeking help.
“Africans are selling themselves too cheaply. When we encounter foreign investors you talk of a gold mine. We think this deal is $1 million, they believe its $100 million. Do you think they are going to say ‘why not make it $50 million or even $100 million?’… They capitalize on our ignorance.”
He says Africans need to find ways to exploit the resources of the land to make money. In Tanzania, Mengi says the booming sectors are mining, agriculture, telecoms and oil and gas.
“Right now I’m fighting to create opportunities for Tanzanians to be able to invest in oil and gas. To have a sustainable private sector you need adequate participation from local people,” he says.
When it comes to entrepreneurs in Africa, Mengi says none can hold a candle to his mother.
“My mother could take a bunch of bananas and come with a kilo of rice. My mother could take just one chicken and come back with a kilo of potatoes. My mother would carry a bunch of bananas and come back with a pair of shorts for school. That is the greatest entrepreneur I admire.”
When asked about his wealth, Mengi shies away saying it is un-Tanzanian to boast.
“A rich African cannot look at life the way a rich American or European looks at life. In the case of Africans we are surrounded by many poor people, we grew up with them. We have to know where we’ve come from. Look at the rich Africans; tell me one who didn’t come from poverty. We all came from poverty, but we have to look back to where we’ve come from. We should not forget.”
He is an advocate of philanthropy and has given money towards education, the disabled and health. Along the way he earned the strange nickname ‘The Condom King’.
“If you see someone on the roof of a house and you think ‘he’s not alright, he wants to jump down’. And by jumping down he’s going to crash and die but there is a ladder nearby. Would you take the ladder and put it there for him to come down smoothly? Or would you say ‘just jump, just jump’?” he says about the wisdom of using condoms.
“I had been advocating the use of condoms in Tanzania. I had a very big fight with the bishops in the Catholic Church. They said, ‘Mengi has a huge plant for making condoms… Mengi is in collaboration with white people, he wants to use condoms to exterminate the black race…”
On the contrary, Mengi wants to give his money to his fellow Africans before he dies. He doesn’t want to be remembered for what he had, more for what he did.
Many see Mengi as a hard worker.
“Am I working harder than the poor woman cleaning the streets in the sun? Am I working harder than someone breaking stones at a construction site?”
Mengi’s story of triumph in the face of poverty is one many can relate to. From barefoot and sharing a hut with cattle to dining in Paris, Mengi proves that anything is possible.

‘Africans Are Selling  Themselves Too Cheaply’

The BBC calls him young and charismatic. Uebert Angel is an enigma who has private audiences with heads of state, parliamentarians, philanthropists, billionaires and once with the late world icon, Nelson Mandela.
Business analysts have argued that his unlimited access to world leaders and leading businessmen has given Uebert Angel an unfair advantage over his peers in the real estate business.
Regardless of this, Angel, after close investigation, is one of the thousands of successful entrepreneurs across Africa who are creating million-dollar fortunes. These entrepreneurs do not inherit wealth; they earn it.
The prophet, a former finance lecturer and financier by profession, has two degrees in business finance from the Salford University in Britain. He has business experience and qualifications.
He also obtained a postgraduate degree at Bolton University in Manchester and has a pending Master’s degree in applied philosophy from the University of Wales in Cardiff.
His eye for the finer things in life facilitated his business acumen. In 2005, Angel established Club Millionaire, a concierge establishment providing services to the cash-rich but time-poor individuals around the globe.
Angel timed the launch of his business well. He set up his company long before the concierge boom flooded the industry in 2012 to secure part of his fortune. He then ventured into real estate, starting with residential and then moving into developing commercial properties.
His real estate and construction companies traded under various holdings and trusts in Europe, Africa and Asia. He then forayed into building a noteworthy media empire, with secular and lifestyle television channels and a Christian charitable record label that owns the rights to the music of multi-award winning artists like Sonnie Badu.
Aside from Africa, some of Angel’s companies are registered in Europe and Hong Kong. Hong Kong is favorable due to investments not being taxed in the region. The corporate profits tax rate is 16.5%, there is no capital gains tax and no accumulated earnings taxes on companies that retain earnings rather that distribute them.
Angel is reputed to have such a keen business sense and entrepreneurial skill that he is able to start small companies and grow them. He then sells them and invests the money in real estate and other projects.
In February, he bought Great Hampton Limited in Britain, a company with 30,000 square feet of choice real estate as its chief asset. The structure, which is close to the Birmingham University School of Law, is said to be valued at around $2 million and will be worth more after the renovations and improvements he is putting in place.
The Zimbabwe-born British national, who is also the bestselling author of Healing Is Easy and a sought after conference speaker, was voted the most influential Zimbabwean last year and won the Newsmaker Award in the same year.
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He is also a Peace Ambassadorial Award recipient.
His fame is huge and his contacts, impressive. He has presidents and the rich on speed dial.
There is a lot more to Angel than just business. He is a strong believer in the Giving Pledge initiative, founded by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, which encourages wealthy people to donate at least half of their money to charity.
The Giving Pledge has so far persuaded more than a hundred billionaires to give the majority of their wealth to charities. South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe is on that list.
While Angel is not in their league, he has engaged in philanthropic endeavors which have not gone unnoticed.
Last year, after a donation of $1.4 million was given to him by friends and well-wishers for his birthday, he donated all of it to charity.
Using his own resources, Angel is also building houses for the poor and helping parents pay school fees in what he and his wife, Beverly, the patron of Hand Of Mercy (HOME) have called Adopt A School – Adopt A Child program. Hand of Mercy intends to help at least 100,000 people by 2017, a feat he says is possible if they concentrate on community development rather than individuals.
While Angel has a lot of business interests, there is another side to him that has attracted the world’s attention.
He is a staunch believer in Christ and claims to have the gift of prophecy. Some argue that his businesses and his contacts have grown primarily because of this. Others stress that he is a darling of the masses because he helps the less fortunate. Angel returned to Africa from Britain, while his business empire was at its peak, to help develop the continent.
Such is his influence in Africa that when he moved back to Zimbabwe, the Christian organization he started, Spirit Embassy, grew from 12 to 5,000 people in four weeks and is now approaching the 10,000 mark.
His business adventures have slowed down since the media latched onto his uncanny ability to predict events. He has given accurate prophecies about the deaths of Michael Jackson and former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, the Kenya Mall massacre among many world events. His predictions include the date and time, even a year before they occur, putting him on the forefront of the prophetic movement in Southern Africa.
Last year, media reports claimed Angel was worth $60 million, a figure he denies. His wife backs him up on this subject.
Beverly, a former finance lecturer, exudes humility. She is intelligent, but an individual of few words. When asked about her husband, she will only talk about their charitable initiatives.
&#8220;Whatever you find or see is already committed to our very own giving pledge initiative, so, come to think of it, what do we really own if it is all for philanthropy? Zero is the answer!&#8221;
Angel’s success is clear but there is still a lot about him that is shrouded in mystery.

The Prophet Of Success

It was a bad time for new beginnings. The year was 1976 and South Africa was burning. The township youth was protesting against Bantu education and it was then that the 18-year-old Tommy Makhatho walked out of school with nothing.
Life was bleak; it took him two years to get a lowly job as a waiter in the Carlton Hotel in Johannesburg. It was here where his life changed.
“Life was hard at the time but I was so motivated to try my hand at anything,” says Makhatho.
This is the epiphany of a man who spent his teenage years moving from one relative’s home to another.
It all began the day he met flamboyant hairdresser Brian Gule, dressed in a cowboy hat and boots, in the coffee shop at the Carlton Hotel.
“I was amazed by this man who would come to the hotel every day and tip me more than what a cup of coffee costs. He carried a stack of cash with him. He really liked me and I took the opportunity to ask him what he was doing for a living. I could not believe that he owned a salon in Soweto,” says Makhatho.
Gule agreed to take him to see what he was doing better than other hairdressers in Soweto. On that day, Makhatho got himself a temporary job as a shampooist at Gule’s Blackwave salon. Soon after, in 1983, he was a full-time hairdresser and had resigned from the hotel.
“At the salon there were always long queues of people who wanted their heads done. That’s when I started realizing why this man was making so much money from the business,” recalls Makhatho.
A year later, Makhatho resigned from Blackwave to start his own small salon. He had some knowledge of the business and a certificate in hairdressing.
From the years of blow waves, he saved around $700; the capital he needed for his backyard salon in Soweto. But it did not pay off and he had to crawl back to Gule to ask for his old job.
“To start a hair salon at that time was easy; you needed at least a small shelter, some start-up equipment and some money. But keeping clients was a challenge. I was ambitious and made a mistake of not planning properly,” he says.
A married and mature Makhatho resigned again and left Johannesburg for QwaQwa, in the east of South Africa, to open a salon on April 16, 1984, a date close to his heart. This was make or break.
At the time, Makhatho was selling women’s clothing door-to-door. His wife Thandeka, a teacher, joined the salon business and in four years they had six branches and $29,500 in the bank.
“We opened new salons every few months for four years,” says Makhatho.
The salons generated enough money to open a cosmetics distributor, Jabula Cosmetics, supplying hair products around the Free State.
But the rapid growth made it difficult for the Makhathos to control the operation.
“We could not manage the business from a distance, so we had to close the other branches and go back to the original salon.”
In 1993, Makhatho ventured into the supermarket sector and opened the first Bibi Cash &amp; Carry store. A second store was opened and two other bigger supermarkets followed in 2005.
His eldest daughter, Nwabisa, unwittingly lent the name. Her younger brother, Setjaba, called her Bibi. Makhatho thought if a toddler could say it, surely everyone could remember it.
“When we did our financial year-end projection for 2006/7, we realized the last two stores wouldn’t pull through, so we closed them down. We closed down an asset worth $1.78 million with view of coming back,” he explains.
From the profits of the two supermarkets the Makhathos opened two more stores in 2009 and 2010, respectively. Then, two years down the line, the first Johannesburg supermarket was opened with a second due in April.
“Why should I keep my money in the bank, I am a hardened entrepreneur, money needs be invested back into the business to grow. It is safer in the business than in the bank,” asserts Makhatho.
The family owns six supermarkets employing more than 800 people. There are 32 Bibi Express stores in the Free State.
Makhatho thinks people overlook retail.
“People need to understand if you want to be successful in life, you must be the best in what you do. I had the experience of being ignored by many as soon as they realized I am in the supermarket business. Once people hear you are in the mining business they give you respect no matter what,” Makhatho explains.
Makhatho is a firm believer in the power of aggressive advertising. He says competition in retail is interesting if you play your cards right.
“You should not shy away from competing with the established national supermarkets because there is a big market out there. I will never put my shop alone. I want it next to those supermarkets and bombard customers with advertising flyers and banners. That is guerrilla marketing.”
This success allowed him to buy a massive home in the luxurious Houghton Estate in Johannesburg and win the 2013 Sanlam/Business Partners Entrepreneur of the Year award.
“Awards are recognitions from the people who have been observing what you are doing all along. They get you inspired to do more and more of what you are being recognized for,” says Makhatho.
Makhatho’s son Setjaba joined the family business as a systems manager, after two years in management at the Southern Sun hotel group.
“I see myself in him. He’s a dreamer like me and highly innovative. With him on board, there’s another guaranteed 30 years in the family business.”
Setjaba has a hospitality management qualification from Switzerland. Of the four children, he is the only one involved in the family business. Nwabisa, lender of the Bibi name, is a teacher.
“In the next 10 years Bibi will be the major player in the FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) retail sector. I will be 65 then. I also consider listing as an option to raise more money. I still have energy to continue, even Setjaba can’t keep up with me,” he jokes.
All this thanks to a little curiosity over a cup of coffee.

Tag: millionaire

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