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| Type of business | Private company |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1999 |
| Headquarters | Johannesburg, South Africa |
| Key people | Andy Higgins, Managing Director; Craig Lubbe, Head of Marketplace |
| Industry | Online Shopping marketplace |
| Products | Online auction hosting |
| Parent | Bob Group |
| URL | www |
| Launched | 1999 |
Bob Shop, formerlyBidorbuy or bidorbuy.co.za (officially written as one word, all-lowercase; variations: bid or buy, Bidorbuy and Bid or Buy), is a South Africane-commerce website based on aninternet auction andonline marketplace. Transactions on Bidorbuy are in South African Rand.
Bidorbuy (Bob Shop) was launched by Andy Higgins in August 1999 at the height of the dotcom boom, in South Africa. Initial funding and support was provided by ProfessorYair Tauman, ProfessorAbraham Neyman, Mr. Danny Barnea, and Mr. Zohar Gilon. In 2000, the platform expanded to India and Australia. In 2001, after the dotcom crash, the Australian site was closed and the Indian website was merged with Baazee.com (which was sold toeBay in 2004[1]).
Bidorbuy.co.za became the largest online marketplace in South Africa and Africa.[2] In 2010, it invested into PayFast,[3] a localonline payment company, and 2014 into thee-commerce company uAfrica.com.[4] It merged with UAfrica, in August 2022 to form Bob Group.[5] In March 2023, UAfrica was rebranded as Bob Go and Bidorbuy as Bob Shop.[6]
Bob Shop's business model is described to be similar toeBay. Listings on the platform are either live auction or listed at a fixed price.
Bidorbuy allowed registered charities and non-profit organizations to raise funds on the site. In 2009, charities raised over R425,000 through sales on this platform.[7]The biggest amount, R300,100 was raised for the Ubuntu Education Fund through the sale of the lastVW Citi Golf ever made for the general public by the sellerVolkswagen South Africa.[8][9] In the same year, the Celebrities for Charities Auctions event was held on the site, in which 39 celebrities, most notably the archbishopDesmond Tutu, auctioned their time to raise funds for charities.[10] In 2011, several South African celebrities participated in the Celebrity for Charity auctions benefiting charities including Reach for a Dream and Johannesburg Child Welfare.[11]
In March 2016, the VodacomBlue Bulls rugby team auctioned jerseys signed by the players on Bidorbuy.[citation needed]Samsung South Africa's The #SamsungHeroes online event, was organized on Bidorbuy in July 2016.[12]
Bidorbuy and institutions of higher learning collaborated to encourage entrepreneurship among young South Africans. It is claimed that around 60 students of the University of Johannesburg, and Raymond Ackerman Academy of Entrepreneurial Development participated in January 2010[13] and around 50 students of the Investment Society at the University of Cape Town (InvestSoc) participated in March 2010.[14]
According to Biztech Africa, Bidorbuy claims 20% of the people selling on its site make a living though the use of the platform.[15]
Companies based inGreater Johannesburg | |||
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| Diversified conglomerates | |||
| Airlines |
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| Construction and engineering | |||
| Energy | |||
| Financial |
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| Hospitality | |||
| ICT | |||
| Legal | |||
| Manufacturing |
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| Media | |||
| Mining | |||
| Retail and marketing | |||
| Restaurant franchises | |||
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| State-owned enterprises | |||
