Today we’d like to introduce you to Jacobus Uys.
Hi Jacobus, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Black Sable started because I was tired of building someone else’s dream.
I thought there were better ways of doing things, and felt the leadership hadn’t done the necessary work to grow and change their mindset.
After quitting, I gave myself three months to get the ball rolling.
In month one, our first big opportunity arrived. It was also in our selected niche. Finishing off an African Safari lodge, where the original architect was fired.
This proved pivotal because the client ended up continuing work (although a new project) during the COVID years, keeping us going during those tough two years.
We hired our first teammate beginning in 2022 and are now a team of four.
During our latest round of hiring, we got over 50 applications to join our small team and were overwhelmed by the response. The biggest takeaway was that people don’t necessarily want to work for money, but they want to work where they are valued and can contribute. It spurred us on to focus even more on creating an incredible office culture.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has definitely not been a smooth road. COVID shelved all of our projects but one, we’ve had numerous cash flow issues where invoices aren’t being settled. We’ve had to fire clients and walk away from fees because it was a terrible fit and a huge error.
We have a project extended significantly, more than our maximum retainer period covered, and we just have to finish it off. My business partner and I have had to split our partnership, something I am currently going through.
But these aren’t necessarily bad things, these are just facts. How you view them determines if it’s the end of days or just another opportunity in disguise.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
As an architectural studio, we specialize in Luxury African Safari Lodges. We’ve niched down and through this, have been able to rapidly develop expertise, a client roster that makes me pinch myself and a list of projects that all align with our expertise. We are already competing with the top firms in this vertical, and in some cases have managed to land clients, even though we weren’t the cheapest option, out-competing firms with multiple decades of experience on us. We are deeply relationship-focused and really anchor on building a team that is resilient and independent.
Our culture is centered around us coaching each other to find the right solution, as opposed to always trying to give an answer. This reinforces independence and ownership and ultimately leads to the goal of Black Sable running itself. My team has huge amounts of independence, something that daunts them when they start. I try and encourage the antithesis of micromanagement.
How do you think about happiness?
Creating. Sharing. Moving
I love sharing what I know and having others share what they know with me, this allows me to connect with someone, to understand them better and maybe empathize and see the world almost in a completely new way. Also, nothing beats changing your perspective completely.
Creating has been something that has been a part of me since the beginning when playing with Lego, or drawing. It was never coloring-in books, I hated those or building the set Lego design. I’d build it, but immediately after completing it, destruction!
I’ve been a mover my whole life, swimming, cricket, martial arts, yoga, rock climbing, mountain biking, and dancing. It is something that I find happiness and peace
Contact Info:
- Website: www.blacksable.co.za
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blacksableza/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_0L07ciR8lADxI8apAAWrQ
Image Credits
Jacobus Uys
