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Michael A MeyerThe South African director in charge of operations in South Africa is Michael Anton Meyer and was one of the founding directors in 1998. He spends most of his time in South Africa, yet visits companies and research institutes worldwide to keep up-to-date with the latest developments in both skin care and nutritional supplements - all to do with anti-aging and improving the quality of life for all people. His Ageless herbal range is also endorsed by the world-renowned British celebrity Sharon Prasad.
The life and times of Michael MeyerMichael Meyer was born to a very interesting family in Pretoria, South Africa, who fostered him to be a free-thinker and to experiment with anything that he was interested in. His father’s influential post in government also ensured that Michael had unfettered access to resources at an early age. From an early age Michael was interested in general health and looking good, and started doing facials, manicures and pedicures from the age of eight, charging all the willing family members and neighbors ZAR 0.05 per treatments (about US$ 0.01). His particular forthright nature and chatty ways already showed early on in his life, and from an early age he liked being with people and doing business. His greatest supporter and mentor was his mother, Anna Meyer, who always supported him – even in the pre-apartheid society of South Africa, which was a narrow-minded, highly regulated Calvinistic and unforgiving society. His interest in nutrition was sparked and inspired from an early age by his twice-removed uncle – Dr Johan Latsky (Head of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome) and the family started using unknown items such as yoghurt and yellow margarine long before it was commercially available anywhere in the world. Another great influence was his maternal grandfather – Soon Liebenberg – a self-made millionaire farmer and investor who instilled in him the love and commitment for hard work. He also learned from his grandfather that you could start with nothing, and through perseverance achieve what you set out to do, if you work hard enough and believe in your commitment. His paternal grandmother – Anne Meyer – was a very strong-willed, headstrong, no-nonsense, witty, clever and ascetic person. From her he learned self-discipline, self-reliance and the value of money and not to be daunted by anybody – whoever they are. Michael started at age 15, still in high school, to be involved in skin care manufacture, but this part of his life was put on the back-burner while he completed schooling and studying. He lived in the UK for some time, and qualified as a gifted interior designer, as well as trained in cosmetology but returned to South Africa after his relationship to a British TV producer fell apart. Back in South Africa he followed various employment careers – including working for S.A.A., as an interior designer (and also being a trustee of the biggest shopping complex in the Southern hemisphere); an estate agent; and becoming the manager of a property company. For eleven years he was also a “stringer” (a free-lance contributor) to the then very prestigious and influential Pretoria Newsdaily newspaper, and wrote a twice-weekly column in English from 1984. After 1993 he was also asked by Beeld – the most influential Afrikaans newspaper in South Africa - to write twice weekly articles for them, which her did for many years. He also traveled nationally and internationally, doing lecture tours on designing and appeared on national and international radio and television shows. Due to the impact he had on the design world in general, and specifically in South Africa, he was awarded an honorary doctorate in design.
The origin of Sallamander Concepts
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| Michael as a toddler | Michael at pre-school | Michael with his eldest sister Susan Taljaard | Michael at 16 |
The Meyer family, from which Michael A Meyer – director of Sallamander Concepts (Pty) Ltd - descends, was founded in South Africa by Gerrit Hendrik (Heindrick) Meyer (originally Meijer) from Germany.
He arrived in the 1680’s in the Cape via Amsterdam and his name appears in 1690 in the VOC registers (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie) as a worker but became a free citizen in 1692 (vryburger) and moved to Franschhoek. The Cape was first colonized by Jan van Riebeeck, who landed on 6 April 1652.
He was married to Susanne Caucheteux in 1693. She was born on 18 December 1675 in Pas de Calais in the town Marck in France. Her father was Isaie Engelbert Caucheteux and her mother Susanne Albert. Susanne Caucheteux was christened on 5 January 1676 - with Jacques Clinquemeur and Anne du Ponchel as witnesses.
The Caucheteux family (the parents, Susanne and her two brothers Isaie and Jean) escaped to Holland after the recall of the Edict of Nantes with the Edict of Fontainebleau in October 1685 by Louis XIV.
The Caucheteux parents seemed to disappear at this stage and Susanne and her brother Isaie, were adopted by Nicolaas Cleef of Groszsalze, Germany and Barbare le Fèvre (sister of Pierre le Fèvre). Pierre le Fèvre was a Huguenot living on the farm Fleur Baix in Stellenbosch, South Africa.
Her brother Isaie married Anna Marcavene (from Marseveen) but died in 1708 at the age of 35 - leaving no children. Anna Marcavene remarried Abraham Prévot (who came from Calais, France) - and Abraham Prévot was the last French Huguenot to die in the Cape on 1767.
The fourth child of the union between Gerrit Hendrik Meyer and Susanne Caucheteux – Esaias (Jesaias) Engelbert Meyer (married to Maria de Bruyn in 1733) is the direct branch of the family from which Michael Meyer is a descendant.
To look at the entire family tree, as researched and published by Michael Meyer Snr. please see the PDF format...
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