It took three decades to build Ellies into a leading tech brand and just five years of poor leadership to destroy it.
At its height on 16 May 2013, Ellies’ share price traded at over R9.50 and its market capitalisation was R3 billion.
By February 2024, Ellies was in voluntary business rescue and its share price had plummeted to one cent. Two months later, the holding company was in liquidation, and Ellies was being sold for parts.
It didn’t have to end this way. After a period of decline between 2013 and 2019, Ellies adopted a promising strategy to focus on backup power but failed to execute it.
Founded in 1979 by Ellie Salkow, the company started with five employees selling TV aerials in Johannesburg, a modest start to what would become a billion-rand electronics brand.
Ellies expanded rapidly and opened branches in Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth, Windhoek, Polokwane, Gaborone, Nelspruit, East London, and Bloemfontein.
In the nineties, Ellies broadened its product range to include remote controls and other accessories.
With the advent of satellite TV in South Africa, the company founded Elsat in 1995, which became a major supplier of DStv’s hardware products and a household name.
Ellies was listed on the JSE’s Alternative Exchange in 2007. It issued its maiden dividend in 2010 and moved to the JSE’s main board in 2010.
The company became a firm favourite among investors, and there was excitement about its role in providing set-top boxes in partnership with Altech UEC as part of the digital terrestrial television (DTT) migration.
However, as the government fumbled the DTT roll-out, so did the interest in Ellies and its prospects.
The share price declined by 80% between 2013 and 2014, and the company continued to lose value as it searched for new revenue streams.
A few years later, DStv’s subscriber numbers began to stagnate and decline in South Africa, causing that part of Ellies’ business to suffer. By 2019, it was trading at 10c per share.
With changing market conditions, Ellies decided to focus on alternative energy solutions. This was an inspired strategy.
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Updated: June 2025
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