Faan and Dirk van der Walt, the billionaire brothers behind WeBuyCars, are accelerating their plan to dominate South Africa’s second-hand car market. The company aims to grow its network from 129 branches and buying pods to 160 by 2026, with a long-term goal of reaching 200 across all nine provinces.
What began as a backyard hobby has transformed into an R18 billion JSE-listed used-car empire, challenging the traditional norms of South Africa’s motoring industry.
Growing up in Bronkhorstspruit, Pretoria, Faan and Dirk learned the value of hard work from their parents,Faan’s mother a teacher, his father a security guard. Their father’s passion for fixing old Citroëns rubbed off on Faan, who developed a knack for repairing vehicles, while Dirk leaned into marketing and business strategy.
Faan’s entrepreneurial spark appeared early. In high school, he bought a Yamaha XT500 motorbike for R400, repaired it, and sold it for R450. Later, while studying teaching at the University of Pretoria, he flipped his first car,a blue Volkswagen 412. Despite his love for cars, he never envisioned a career in the industry.
After teaching in the United Kingdom for two years, the couple returned to South Africa with R300,000 in savings. They invested R200,000 in a house and the remainder in founding WeBuyCars in 2001. Starting with cars in Faan’s backyard, they quickly discovered the power of combining automotive knowledge with strategic marketing.
Dirk’s marketing innovations set them apart. Instead of waiting for car owners to advertise, he put “kontant vir jou motor” ads everywhere,from ATMs to cafes,ensuring they reached sellers first. Their early adoption of a website also gave them a competitive edge, allowing nationwide leads to fuel rapid growth.
The brothers handled every aspect of the business themselves for nearly a decade—from washing and driving cars to fetching bank documents—before expanding their team. By 2014, WeBuyCars had buyers in all major South African cities. In 2017, the launch of The Car Supermarket in Midstream marked Africa’s largest car showroom at the time.
Recent milestones include redesigning the website in 2020 for smoother online auctions, acquiring the TicketPro Dome in Johannesburg in 2021 for R175 million and transforming it into the WeBuyCars Dome, and listing on the JSE in 2024. Today, WeBuyCars sells 15,000 vehicles per month and employs 3,600 people.
Despite its success, the company shows no signs of slowing. Faan says they will continue expanding, improving customer service, and rolling out buying pods nationwide. By 2026, WeBuyCars aims to operate around 200 pods in shopping centers and towns across South Africa.
From backyard beginnings to a nationwide empire, Faan and Dirk van der Walt are reshaping how South Africans buy and sell cars,one pod at a time.
