Industry legend dies

Industry legend Murray Grindrod senior passed away on Saturday at the age of 79 after 21 years as chairman and 50 years’ service with the Grindrod Group. He retired in 2007.

The grandson of John Edward Grindrod, the founder of the Grindrod Group, his interest in shipping started at an early age given his father’s involvement with African Coasters. At a young age, he also developed a keen interest in golf and truly mastered the sport in years to come. He read engineering at Cambridge, captained the university golf team, and later went on to win the South African amateur title in 1960.

He achieved South African colours in the sport on three occasions, including representing South Africa at the Eisenhower Trophy in the USA (1960) and in Rome four years later.

Grindrod joined Grindrod Gersigny in 1957 – the managing agents for African Coasters. In his job he learnt the trade from the wharf side, becoming involved in the hiring of personnel, stevedoring and general ships husbandry. He also took every opportunity to study the ships at sea, which gave him a personal grasp of the trade and an affinity with the people aboard. It was his ability to relate to all from a knowledgeable position that earned him great respect, not only within the company but also in the shipping fraternity in South Africa and internationally.  In 1960 he was appointed alternate director to his father.

When African Coasters needed an urgent capital injection to replace its ageing fleet, Murray Grindrod persuaded his father and Cecil Renaud to seek finance elsewhere. He led the team that secured the finance from Union Corporation, paving the way for the modernisation of the fleet and subsequent takeover of Smith’s Coasters and Thesen’s Steamship Company and the formation of Unicorn Lines.

Under his leadership as managing director, Unicorn pioneered the country's fully cellular coastal container service in 1971.

In 1998 Murray Grindrod announced that he would be stepping down as chairman of Unicorn Lines and that Ivan Clark would take over as the executive chairman in January the following year. He retained his seat on the board of Unicorn Lines and remained the chairman of the Grindrod Limited board until his retirement in 2007.

He leaves his wife Pauli, daughters Anne-Marie and Josi and sons Walter and Murray Paul who are both very involved in Grindrod’s operations.