{"id":634945,"date":"2026-03-23T20:00:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-23T18:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/?p=634945"},"modified":"2026-03-23T20:03:54","modified_gmt":"2026-03-23T18:03:54","slug":"tech-billionaires-wife-building-an-ultra-luxury-e-commerce-giant-in-south-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/business\/634945-tech-billionaires-wife-building-an-ultra-luxury-e-commerce-giant-in-south-africa.html","title":{"rendered":"Tech billionaire’s wife building an ultra-luxury e-commerce giant in South Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Tech billionaire Koos Bekker\u2019s wife, Karen Roos, is behind the rapidly growing Babylonstoren online shopping platform in South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bekker is well-known for being the mastermind behind M-Net, DStv, and MultiChoice, and for transforming Naspers into a global technology powerhouse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Forbes\u2019 real-time billionaires list estimates his net wealth at $3.4 billion, making him one of the richest South Africans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His wife, Karen Roos, is also an extremely successful businesswoman in her own right, having started the ultra-luxury brand Babylonstoren.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Roos started her career as a journalist and served as the fashion editor for Glamour in New York and the editor of Elle Decoration South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another passion was interior decorating. She produced Huis-Huis, a decor programme created for SABC 2 in collaboration with fellow decor journalist Annemarie Meintjes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2003, they again collaborated to publish South, a definitive look at South African attitudes and approaches to interior decor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Roos also authored numerous other books, including Outdoor Living, Agtstyle, Eight Styles, Buite, and Fast Decor: Creative Ideas for Instant Decorating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2005, Roos was appointed as the editor of the leading South African decor magazine, Elle Decoration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her extensive background in decor and design served her well for the next chapter in her career, where she created luxury hotel and lifestyle brands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Roos\u2019s work can be seen throughout the Babylonstoren estate, which blends simple, modern furnishings with antique pieces and stylish touches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She collaborated with French architect Patrice Taravella to create a formal fruit-and-vegetable garden inspired by the historic Company\u2019s Garden in Cape Town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Babylonstoren becoming an e-commerce powerhouse<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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In 2007, Roos and Bekker purchased Babylonstoren, a historic Cape Dutch farm in the Franschhoek Valley.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She led a restoration of the 17th-century yard and built the wine estate into one of South Africa\u2019s most respected brands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It attracts thousands of local and international tourists each month and produces a wide range of products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It includes world-class wines, artisanal baked goods, biltong, dro\u00ebwors, and premium meat cuts, and treats like roasted nuts, vegan fudge, chocolates, and granola.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Babylonstoren also creates its own lifestyle products, like essential oils, bath salts, body scrubs, soaps, candles, linen, and ceramic serveware.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Visitors can purchase these products in the estate\u2019s shops, including The Farm Shop, The Scented Room, and The Garden & Home Shop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Babylonstoren is also a case study in how a traditional heritage brand can successfully pivot to a digital-first mindset without losing its rustic soul.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under Roos\u2019s guidance, the farm has evolved from a handful of estate-based physical shops to a sophisticated e-commerce operation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unlike many retailers, Babylonstoren controls the entire supply chain. They grow and produce all their products, then sell them directly through their own platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They have invested heavily in fulfilment. In South Africa, they offer free nationwide delivery and next-day delivery in cities like Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Pretoria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their food and lifestyle products are the best quality on the South African market and have become a favourite in the ultra-luxury segment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The website design is also modern and classy, and functions more like a digital lifestyle magazine than a store.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is a strong focus on visual elements, which creates a sense of luxury and exclusivity, reinforcing the Babylonstoren brand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Babylonstoren online store offers numerous subscriptions to generate annuity revenue, the holy grail for any e-commerce platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These subscriptions include the Wine Club, Bath & Body Box, and a quarterly selection of exclusive Babylonstoren products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although Babylonstoren does not release official financials, business intelligence platforms rank it among the top online shops in South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Babylonstoren products <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Tech billionaire Koos Bekker\u2019s wife, Karen Roos, is building an ultra-luxury e-commerce giant in South Africa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":634947,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[103939,103940,103938,1649,475,1643,103941],"class_list":["post-634945","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-babylonstoren","tag-bath-body-box","tag-karen-roos","tag-koos-bekker","tag-multichoice","tag-naspers","tag-wine-club"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/634945"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=634945"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/634945\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":635058,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/634945\/revisions\/635058"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/634947"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=634945"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=634945"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=634945"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}