Herein, the first words he says are “I dream big. I don’t hold myself back. I want it all and I’m coming for everything”. Hence the most hashtag of our time, #WeAreComingForEverything. But it all started when he was born in Pretoria, although he grew up in Alex. At 12th Avenue opposite Engen garage. He’s the first born from his parents, he mention his childhood was filled with fun, being naughty and lots of hidings from his mom.
He’s always had a good relationship with his cousin, and with his brother as well. Her cousin introduced him to her network, of which he took advantage of. And today, he is a great network to many himself. The first death (his dad) that he had to deal with was when he was 18. In 2014 he lost his paternal grandmother, 5 months later he lost his mother, the biggest knocks in his life.
He came up with an idea of a magazine in 2010, called Modern Man. And had a lot of questions as a man. He met his business partner Legend Manqele when he was still doing Studio83, they shared the same vision.
As a brand grows, Marvin was getting a lot of attention from a lot of brands wanted to do business with Marvin. Marvin started with a website, followed by content, then Marvin’s Room. Marvin’s Room is where men come together, the people online, good music and drinks. Then Glenfiddich came on board. Marvin convinced Glenfiddich of their vision, and having them aligning with this vision saw the relationship going. All other brand managers didn’t understand Marvin, Marvin people, content, and eventually when they started seeing Marvin numbers going up, people talking about Marvin’s Room. And that’s when they realised Marvin is an extraordinary brand.
George looks up to PowerFM’s MD, Andile Khumalo. Whom he approached when he realised he needs a voice for Marvin. Hence the birth of Marvin’s Conversations slot at PowerFM on every Thursdays at 14:30. And the numbers have been escalated. A relationship with Glenfiddich shows how a reputable brand gives enough chance to a slowly maturing brand like Marvin. These relationships and entities shows that people aren’t going to put money on you, until you put money on yourself. Your brand. Relationships in business are essential, they have to be nurtured, taken care of. Because really building a brand is a journey on its own. There’s a lot of failures involved, disappointments, NO’s, exhaustion. But that’s all that makes it exciting. That makes Marvin relatable to everyday people.
George talks about the relationship with his father. First and foremost, any Marvin man has one, irrespective of whether they have a relationship with their father or not. If there is, a Marvin guy shares as to how it influenced where he is now. If there isn’t, he shares about how it affected them as a young man, and the missing pieces that inspire him to be even more involved in their kid’s life.
Talking about being involved, George talks about how much his father was involved. However he thinks that his father was too involved. His dad was that man that was more active in their street and the community knew him more than other ordinary fathers. Mostly because he had his own business. He speaks about how his dad contributed a lot to where and what he is now. He took him to a computer school, hence the love for technology and online content. His dad protected him from a lot of influence from the hood, of which by then it seemed too much for him but now his thankful.
He boldly talks about his love for S Class. Jokingly saying that he’ll change when he owns one. His biggest reason for owning an S Class is so that he won’t have to drive it, so he can sit with his child at the back so they can have conversations. Because that’s how his dad raised him, they had conversations. He’s an entrepreneur now, because he saw his dad being one.