In March 2004, we (Giel & Natalie van der Merwe) took the plunge to leave the busy city life in Johannesburg and settle down in the beautiful, family friendly town of George.
Our journey has been tough, life-changing, with loads of growth and lots of mistakes. We started out with 2 staff members, and today we have a vibrant and dynamic team of 13.
It truly has been a family journey, and our children (photos right) are no strangers to packing stationery boxes, operating credit card machines, serving customers and watching their parents burn the lamp till late at night to reach targets! Lydia (pictured in blue dress) grew up amongst us unpacking boxes and learned how to crawl in the aisles at Diskonto! She now helps us like a pro over Back to School!
We have so many people to thank for the lessons’ learnt on this journey in the challenging world of retail.
My Dad, lovingly known as Oom Willie by our clients, worked with us growing the business out on the road and took care of our corporate clients’ needs. On the 25th October 2016 we celebrated his 80th Birthday, and he went on to retire a year later at a ripe age of 81.
We are so thankful and grateful for everything he helped us achieve for Diskonto.
Giel van der Merwe / Natalie van der Merwe
To enrich the lives of:
Our team (build up and provide for),
Customers (give hope with excellence and competitive pricing) and
Suppliers (build life-long relationships of integrity)
We take pride in learning and growing – not just in product knowledge, but also in the needs of our clients.
We know that children are the future generation… what an exciting prospect to journey with a child throughout their pre-school years into their tertiary education, and to watch them grow. As we journey with them let us take every opportunity to encourage and give hope for their future.
We have always stood fast to keeping our eyes open to the immediate need. We have partnered with several organisations that serve in our community and bring hope to children and their families in need.
Our Company Culture
We strive to be a strong unit giving inspiration to others through our committed service. We love our clients, and we sell stationery as a sideline! We base our dealings on the following values:
3 Values we offer our customers:
5 Values for our team
3 Values for our business
