Alec Hogg’s regular column covering investment, economics, moneycraft and, occasionally, something very personal.
By Alec Hogg* The name Dudley Saunders won’t resonate with many. Inside South Africa’s media business, though, he was well known and deeply respected. A world class television news cameraman, he died yesterday after being hit by a train while filming for the BBC in Soweto. Dudley was 45. What few realise, even those within … Read more
Sometimes it takes someone famous to open our eyes to daily abuse. Former SA Reserve Bank Governor Tito Mboweni gave away his youth to fight for a just South Africa. After serving in the Mandela Cabinet and then at the country’s Central Bank, Mboweni turned his attention to business where he is making a similar … Read more
The world is about to embark on a high risk experiment which economic theorists will applaud – but social moralists fret about. Colorado has won the race to become the first American State where marijuana can be sold legally to anyone over the age of 21. Grass retails in Denver from Wednesday. Economists have long been … Read more
By Alec Hogg South Africans watched with fascination and then horror at the nuclear-type fallout after  Cape Town-headed New Yorker Justine Sacco’s inappropriate tweet about HIV/Aids, Africa and being White. Justine Sacco, high profile Public Relations executive, achieved global notoriety after she tweeted from Heathrow en route to Cape Town for Christmas with family. The … Read more
The Americans have Thanksgiving. The rest of us have Christmas. The day when much of humanity communes with family. And reflects. Whether you celebrate it for religious reasons or just because of the excuse to hand out presents (although must admit my favourites are usually To Dad, from Dad) , may it be a peaceful, … Read more
Being a parent puts every other tough job into the shade. Parents try their best without really appreciating how easy it is to do damage. That law of unintended consequences works overtime. And, especially on this day, what is the right amount to spend on Christmas gifts? Is an iPad for a three year old … Read more
Two days after Nelson Mandela died, I bumped into a well-networked who warned now Madiba had passed, unflattering things about his past would emerge. It has already started with the claim that the young Mandela received his military training from the Israelis. The Nelson Mandela Foundation wasted no time in denying the report, issuing a … Read more
Pride comes before the fall. Reading from the SAPA report below that politician Julius Malema arrived four hours late for a fundraiser, brought back memories. Ahead of his famous crash in Polokwane, then President Thabo Mbeki did the same thing at an event I attended in Cape Town. Mbeki arrived hours late and then insisted … Read more
UK sports reporters have been enthralled by backroom machinations at Premier League football club Cardiff City.
Business is a pretty rational pursuit. Act emotionally and, in time, the marketplace is sure to punish you. Those who survive and eventually thrive do so because deep down they understand that the market isn’t personal. Much as you might love a product or service, it will not succeed if you cannot get consumers to … Read more