Le Roux has a hand in several ventures. From steel manufacturing in Jet Park to renewable energy projects across Africa, and, then, the family collaboration restoring property in Croatia and Portugal.
Okay, so it’s not every family that chooses projects to do together. This, especially when said project demands a lot of sweat, a bit of arguing along the way and a great deal of patience.
But the Le Roux family – and dad Leandro le Roux – seem to have made a habit of it. He’s a businessman but the family finds the forgotten, the worn-out and then does some CPR.
A jack of all trades
Le Roux has a hand in several ventures. From steel manufacturing in Jet Park to renewable energy projects across Africa, and, then, the family collaboration restoring property in Croatia and Portugal.
“We have always enjoyed making something work again,” he said. “It is not just about profit. It is about taking something that has lost its spark and finding a way to make it useful again.
In Portugal, the family restores old seaside hotels and converts them into retirement spaces for older people.
“Many of the hotels were popular decades ago,” he said. “When the big hotel chains came, they lost business and were left empty. We refurbish them and turn them into places where people can live comfortably and affordably.”
Business in Croatia
In Croatia, they buy and renovate small properties, sometimes subdividing and selling them, sometimes keeping them for holiday rentals.
“We started small,” he said. “You learn as you go. It is satisfying to take something neglected and turn it into a space people want to use again.”
At home, Le Roux and his family has spent the past seven years resuscitating a property called Langhams in Fourways.
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How the business started
When they purchased the place, it was a derelict restaurant and watering hole once owned by a famous radio presenter.
Before that, it was developed by former Springbok tennis player Frank Briscoe. In his time, it was meant to be a tennis academy, but that idea never served an ace for its proprietor.
“Everything was broken,” Le Roux said. “The power was gone, the windows smashed, the gardens overgrown. But I saw potential. It had space, character and history. It just needed someone willing to start again.
Shop in Fourways
“Langhams had been part of Fourways for years. It just lost its way for a bit,” he said.
Le Roux ran a marketing and advertising agency at the time and started by renovating fresh office space for his business. “We needed offices and it was the only thing that made sense,” he said.
“But once we were here, we realised it could be so much more.
“The property was large enough for events and conferences, so we started small, hosting small events at our offices. It helped pay the bills.”
That was the beginning of the rebuild and as the property began to take shape again, the family expanded development into medical suites and wellness spaces.
Covid hits
“It became a little community,” he said. “We wanted to create something that worked.”
Covid halted everything. “By the third day of lockdown, we knew we had to make a plan,” he said. “We opened a bottle of wine and decided to build.” The vine inspired a new workspace concept.
“People needed somewhere safe to return to. We built it using steel and aluminium, designed everything online when nobody could meet and get together, and hoped for the best.”
Then, a wedding venue or events area followed. Then a restaurant.
“My kids grew up here,” Le Roux said. “They played soccer on what was once just dirt. Every wall and corner holds a memory. It is part of us now.”
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