Tinashe Ruzane, cofounder and CEO of FlexClub
Full Name: Tinashe Ruzane
Position and Company Name: Cofounder and CEO of FlexClub
Main Activity of the Company: FlexClub is a car subscription platform offering members a flexible way to shop for vehicles
Date and Place of Birth: October 25, Harare, Zimbabwe
Education: Bachelor’s degree in accounting, University of Pretoria; MBA, Gordon Institute of Business Science
First Job: Selling golf clubs and camping equipment on weekends as a student
Size of First Pay Packet: R300 per weekend
Career Path to Date: I started at Deloitte and then joined an impact investment fund. After its official launch in South Africa in 2013, Uber approached our fund to help drivers access finance. In 2015 I joined Uber, where I worked with the finance and automotive industries to design products especially for Uber drivers, to improve access to cars. My role rapidly expanded to include the rest of Africa, the Middle East and Europe, and this saw me move to Amsterdam at the end of 2016. While working at Uber in Europe, I realised a huge asset financing shift was on the way in the automotive industry and I wanted to be part of it, but in my home market. So, I decided to start FlexClub, along with Marlon Gallardo and Rudolf Vavruch
Value of Assets under Your Control: More than R300-million worth of assets (fleets) distributed through our platform by merchants
Number of People under Your Leadership: Over 50 people in 12 cities
Management Style: Our culture celebrates those that can independently solve problems with imperfect information and/or limited resources
Personal Best Achievement: Investing in becoming a better entrepreneur
Person Who Has Had the Biggest Influence on Your Life: My mother
Person Who Has Had the Biggest Influence on Your Career: I have worked under incredible leaders throughout my career, from whom I have learnt a lot
Person You Would Most Like to Meet: Reed Hastings – for the level of clarity he seems to have as a leader
Businessperson Who Has Impressed You Most: At the moment I am super impressed by Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky
Philosophy of Life: Nothing ventured, nothing gained
Biggest Ever Opportunity: Getting a rare opportunity to be part of a team building the most transformative transport business of my generation.
Biggest Ever Disappointment: My failed experiments with multilevel marketing selling meal supplements while studying
Hope For the Future: That South Africa manages to eradicate violent crime
Favourite Reading: I find myself reading a lot more short-form content (articles, blogs and so on) these days
Favourite TV Programme: I am currently enjoying Ozark
Favourite Food/Drink: Whisky sours/Asian cuisine
Favourite Music: House music
Favourite Sport: Golf
Hobbies: Watching documentaries that expose the inner workings of things I have always wondered about
Car: I subscribe, so they keep changing
Pets: None
Miscellaneous Dislikes: When reality falls far short of expectations – especially when it comes to people
Married: To Angel
Children: A three-month-old daughter
Clubs: Harambe Entrepreneur Alliance and Endeavor