Dave Govender has been appointed CEO of Bravo Group, Africa's largest manufacturer of furniture brands such as Sealy, Edblo, Gommagomma, Grafton Everest and La-Z-Boy. The appointment is effective from 1 June 2020.
Dave Govender
Greg Boulle, Bravo’s CEO since 2014, will remain with the company until his retirement at the end of February 2021.
Govender joins Bravo from Tsebo Solutions Group, where he was group chief procurement officer responsible for the company’s procurement and supply chain function across its South African and African operations. He also headed Tsebo’s asset and fleet leasing division for South Africa.
An MBA graduate from the University of Witwatersrand’s Wits Business School, Govender has worked in executive roles in several diverse industries, including investment holding company Shanduka and FMCG brand giants Coca-Cola and Nando’s. He has also served as a non-executive director on the boards of Alexander Forbes, Macsteel, Seacom and TBWA Hunt Lascaris.
“I’m extremely privileged and humbled to be leading Bravo at this stage,” said Govender. “Bravo’s iconic bed and lounge brands have become home favourites for many South Africans over many years.
"Our market-leading, enduring brands provide me with a firm and ideal platform to help reshape Bravo Group’s future by developing and executing clear and resilient strategies to navigate our way in a current and post-pandemic industry, economy and world, ever-mindful of our responsibilities towards safer workplaces and communities and constantly-evolving consumer behaviour.”
“I look forward to working with the Bravo leadership team and family and taking Greg’s excellent legacy onwards to new levels of growth and innovation across the continent and beyond.”
Clive Harpur, chairman of Bravo’s board of directors, welcomed Dave to the organisation. “The shareholders and board of directors are very fortunate that Dave is able to transition with Greg Boulle during the remainder of this year, ensuring smooth continuity of leadership during the challenging operating environment we find ourselves in,” he said.
