The company is said to take a 60% deposit from clients and never deliver the granite. Lombardy East resident Craig Van Der Plank said the granite company had failed to supply him with granite which he had paid a deposit for, and his deposit wasn’t refunded. Van Der Plank said, “Upon further investigation, we found that there were many others who had experienced the same thing; even people from Durban where he used to operate [were affected].”
Another angry client, Quinton Ramsay, said the owner of the company did not deliver granite he had ordered and the deposit was not paid back in full. Ramsay said, “His intention is to take deposits from people and not do the job, and he will come up with all sorts of excuses for not delivering on his end of the bargain. He is taking people for a ride.”
Several other dissatisfied clients went online to express their loss of confidence in the company and owner. A number of cases have also been opened at different police stations against the owner of the company.
North Eastern Tribune heard recordings of telephone conversations between the owner and an unhappy client. In one of the recordings the owner is heard threatening the client, saying, “You are nothing to me. You don’t know my history or where I come from. In South Africa you can die for R10, so don’t push me. I even know the people you hang around with.”
The owner also said he was “an ANC comrade for years” and that he knows “how to act as a comrade”.
The owner confirmed with North Eastern Tribune that he was aware of the complaints and charges filed against him, however he maintained his innocence in the matter. He said he was “being targeted in a white-dominated industry” as he was “the only black supplier in the area”.
He said that he had been operating his business from Durban and decided to move to Johannesburg due to “slow business”. He also admitted that he had a few unsatisfied clients in both cities.
