The three brothers who walked away from a R22 billion retail empire

Mark, Dan, and Saul Saltzman no longer play any part in Dis-Chem’s operations or have roles on the company’s board. 

They have also sold millions of shares in the company that their parents, Ivan and Lynette Saltzman, founded in 1978 in Johannesburg. 

With Ivan resigning from the company in July 2026, the Saltzmans have made way for a new era of professional management to run Dis-Chem. 

The family’s steady exit from operational positions, and now from the company’s board, was part of the Saltzmans’ succession plan. 

Founder Ivan explained to Broll Auctions that this was always the likely endpoint for the family, as none of the sons intended to become pharmacists like their parents. 

Ivan and Lynette met while studying pharmacy at the University of the Witwatersrand, and then combined their passion for retail with their studies to start Dis-Chem. 

The company revolutionised pharmacies in South Africa by introducing a retail front-of-shop where non-pharmaceutical products were sold. 

This enabled the couple to build a company that today has 316 pharmacies across South Africa and is valued at R22 billion on the JSE. 

While Dis-Chem was firmly a family endeavour, it will not be passed on to the next generation, as the three Saltzman sons were not interested in pharmacy. 

Saul was particularly involved in the business, spending 25 years at the company and becoming an executive director in 2022. 

He is credited with being part of the team that built Dis-Chem’s private-label brand portfolio and its import strategy, which helped it compete against Clicks. 

The other two brothers had limited roles at Dis-Chem in comparison and eventually emigrated from South Africa. 

Walking away from Dis-Chem

“Unfortunately, if you think of regrets, and I have been open about this with my children, they were subjected to too much exposure to Dis-Chem,” Ivan said. 

“I mean, you would come home, and my wife and I would only talk about work. We always had dinner together as a family, and the conversation was always about Dis-Chem.”

“The boys had to eat their food, and it was not in their interest, I know. That is a sacrifice for being successful, and I regret it.”

Saltzman explained that the constant talk about Dis-Chem also showed the children just how much work was involved in running the company. 

This had a chilling effect on their ambitions to succeed their father, as it made being a business leader look unattractive. 

“Nobody wanted to be a pharmacist in the end. They all had roles in Dis-Chem after university in some capacity, but they did not want to be pharmacists,” Saltzman said. 

“They told me, ‘You work too hard’. But that is what we had to do. We were the examples at Dis-Chem, and we are an essential service. You had to work hard.”

This is despite Dis-Chem being a family business until it became more professional, with the Saltzmans exerting their control over the operations. 

“It was a real family business. You know, I had my sons in it, not directly, but they were involved in some capacity. They grew up with the business. It really was a family affair,” Saltzman said. 

In June 2025, Ivan transferred a 25% stake in Dis-Chem, valued at R6.8 billion, to Mark and Dan as part of his gradual exit from the company. 

The brothers disposed of R321 million worth of shares each in early 2026. This left the family holding vehicle, Ivlyn, with a 4.06% stake.

Saul resigned as an executive director in February 2026, and Ivan stepped down as chairman in July 2026. This leaves no family member employed or serving as a director of the company.