The Hirsch’s group certainly has proved over the years that economics and excellence can be good running partners as they continue to turn houses into homes.
The largest independently owned appliance and electronics retail outlet in Southern Africa has a lot to celebrate as they mark 42 years in business.
Unlike many retail outlets that have experienced significant losses in business during the Covid-19 pandemic, the end of their financial year saw Hirsch’s achieve well over their budget.
Founder of the company, Allan Hirsch revealed to the Northsider that when they predicted their budget for the year 2021, they looked for quite aggressive growth, but then at the end of March 2020 they assumed that this was never going to happen.
“Fortunately we are in an industry that has benefited from the situation we are in, as the home space has been the focal point for many consumers and there has been a huge demand for home goods.
“As a result, we have achieved well over our budget. We have had an amazing year and we are truly grateful to our customers, our staff and our suppliers, all of whom have helped attribute to our success,” said Allan.
The appliance repair man who unwittingly became an entrepreneur started off small but built a strong base of customers over the years, first with repairs and second-hand repaired appliances, and then into a fully fledged appliance retailer.
Allan and his wife Margaret started their family-run appliance business in a tiny showroom on Umhlanga Rocks Drive, Durban in 1979 with just the R900 they had saved.
After leaving school Allan joined Fuchsware where he spent five years learning all there was to know about refrigerator repairs.
Allan said if it was not for his wife’s belief in him (she insisted he see a specialist who diagnosed dyslexia, a problem that had seen his self-esteem plummet during his schooling years) he would still be repairing fridges today.
Finding out that he was dyslexic changed his life. It gave him the courage and determination to start the business and grow it into one of the best entrepreneurial success stories in South Africa.
Over the last 42 years, Hirsch’s have had the joy of serving young married couples and helping them to set up their first homes with everything from the air conditioning unit to the tiniest kitchen gadget.
In 2002, the company brought their Hirsch’s Homestore concept to Gauteng and in 2012 they opened their first branch in Cape Town.
Today they own 18 branches in KZN, Gauteng and Western Cape. Despite recessions and the global economic crisis, the Hirsches are upbeat about South Africa, and their expansion plans in the face of the downturn attest to this.
“We might be a family business, but our growth and success are due to all our customers, our family of 850 permanent staff, some 400 casual employees and owner drivers.
“We have established ourselves as a place to buy your first appliance and we build relationships with customers so that they come back,” said Allan and Margaret’s son Richard Hirsch, CEO of the company.
