Obituary: Henri Kuiper: 01.06.1924 – 22.03.2020

Writer: Elaine Davie.

Henri Kuiper was no ordinary man – in the business world they called him a wunderkind in his youth, enfant terrible if he trod on their toes. Henri had a will to win, second to none. He maintained that this was drilled into him as a decorated young RAF fighter pilot in WWII where “if you lost, you were either dead or a prisoner.”

Together with a tough work ethic, self-discipline, and a generous supply of self-confidence to go with a sharp intellect, this killer instinct saw him reach the top of several careers by the time he was in his mid-40s. Never afraid to reinvent himself, Henri went from being a pilot to a successful advocate at the Johannesburg Bar, to Managing Director of the SAAN (South African Associated Newspapers) which included the Sunday Times, Sunday Express and Rand Daily Mail at a time when the Nationalist Party Government was giving the more liberal press a torrid time. The prestigious Financial Mail was also launched by him. All before he was 40.

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