Cape Town, W. Cape, SA – Veldskoen Shoes, which went into business rescue in July, “is trading much better than it was when we started”, BR practitioner Julian Empedocles, of Almaz Consulting, said on Friday.

“There’s been an amazing turnaround. I decided to move the business back from Woodstock to its original premises in Paarden Eiland, which is much better for walk in foot traffic. We’ve had a really good week this week with international tourists. It’s giving the business a lot of international exposure. There’s a good atmosphere, among staff and clients.”

He said online sales, mostly to South African customers, are the biggest source of sales, followed by tourists.

Veldskoen is also still exporting “to some fantastic resellers in Botswana and Europe.

But its exports to the United States, which were the main target previously, “are on hold”, he said. “We have to restructure ourselves locally first.”

There is no set period currently for the business rescue operation. “We want it to be as short as possible,” he said, “The aim is to restructure the company and hand it back to the board of directors when it is solvent and trading successfully.”

Veldskoen Shoes is a fully owned subsidiary of Veldskoen Capital (Pty) Ltd, which was placed in liquidation. The shareholding of Veldskoen Shoes is currently in the hands of the joint liquidators. 

Johannesburg, Gauteng, SA – Swiss sportswear brand On will change its Southern African distributor on 01 January 2026 when it ends its 8-year relationship with Tifosi Sports (Pty) Ltd, which has represented it since 2017, and moves to Luminance Sport (Pty) Ltd, part of the Surtee Group.

In a blog on 22 October, Tifosi CEO Nick Zografos said it would continue “bringing premium, performance-driven sports brands to Southern Africa”. An article on Tifosi’s plans will appear in S&V Footwear & Leather Goods Magazine on Wednesday.

Surtee Group director Fazel Surtees said last week: “I can confirm that we are finalizing agreements with regard to the distribution and retail development of On in South Africa from January 2026 but unfortunately am unable to make any formal comments at this stage according to my understanding that Tifosi is still the current distributor in the market.

“In the new year a full and dedicated team will be appointed. It is a process and a process that is being followed in conjunction with On International.

“We are bound by an NDA until such time as all agreements are finalised between the various parties.” 

Pinetown, KZN, SA – BBF Safety Group (Pty) Ltd has appointed Ndlela Mazibuko as MD, effective 01 November 2025. He will work alongside the BBF Safety Group CEO, Brian Kuhnert, together with the Beier Group CEO, Warren Sachs, “in growing the customer centric focus of the business”, according to a release. 

Pietermaritzburg, KZN, SA – Leather men’s footwear manufacturer Evané Footwear has kept to its business model of supplying only independent retailers and wholesalers, member Raffique Shah said last week.

“Supplying chains would mean switching to synthetics and supplying much bigger volumes,” he said. “Leather footwear has become much more of a luxury item, and we’ve had to reduce production to 300 pairs/day with a 4-day week – not the levels I would like to be at – but we are now a niche manufacturer, and there’s some security in that.”

He said Evané would review its strategy for next year. 

Cape Town, W. Cape, SA – The founders of Veldskoen Shoes, Ross Zondagh and Nick Dreyer, have both resigned from the company and have set up a new business which will concentrate on promoting South African made products in North America and Europe.

Dreyer resigned in August, Zondagh in September, following court cases in February and June between them and Veldskoen Shoes as the respondents, and Adrian Moors, the Dorothea Charlotte Moors Family Trust, and Hendrika Zondagh as applicants, which led to the calling up on loans and Veldskoen Shoes being placed under business rescue.

“We found it impossible to continue at Veldskoen,” Zondagh said, “but this hasn’t affected our belief in South African manufacturing and South Africa as a brand capable of generating euphoria globally.

“We’ve started a new business, trading as Made In RSA, to help South African brands which are doing well here to break into the US and the EU, especially.

“We spent 8 years developing Veldskoen, and we’ve paid our school fees. We don’t have the overheads of Veldskoen, and most of the Veldskoen staff have joined us. We feel we’re in a unique position to assist good manufacturers of quality products.”