Touchsides | Team

Jan van Velzen

Executive Director

Jan joined Touchsides in 2019. He brings with him 23 years of experience in marketing and sales from Heineken International. He has a passion for people, retail, and digital.

Gary Kaplan

Founder and Non-Executive Director

Gary brings relationship-driven leadership to our dynamic company. He is a seasoned entrepreneur having started and grown multinational companies, mostly in high-tech and services. Gary relishes the challenges of growing businesses and has a solid track record in mergers and acquisitions, and listed companies.

Dr David Fraser

Founder and Non-Executive Director

David has over 30 years’ experience in high-tech innovation, entrepreneurial businesses and listed companies. His businesses have operated across 17 countries in Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia. David loves connecting innovative technology to businesses to drive commercial and competitive advantage.

Sias Smith

Financial Director

Sias is a finance director with a demonstrated history of working in the food and beverages industry. He is skilled in leading financial software, consolidation, external auditing, accounting, IFRS, budgeting, forecasting and credit control.

Adinda Kapp

Human Resource Director

Adinda is an experienced human resource leader. She is skilled in labour relations, career development, coaching, and talent management. Adinda is passionate about merging the strategic vision of a company with the ambition of its people.

Robert Dodds

Head of Operations SA and Global Support

Robert joined Touchsides to oversee and initiate the rapid expansion of the Touchsides solution in South Africa and globally. He has 38 years of executive management and board level experience in retail, FMCG, and industrial goods.

Devon Kaplan

Executive Officer

Devon is a key driver of the company’s commercial endeavours. As a chartered accountant, he assists with projects across Touchsides and has attained a prosperous track record of mergers and acquisitions, as well as company turnaround strategies.

Sebastiaan Berkvens

Head of Commerce SA

Sebastiaan Berkvens is proficient in data-driven marketing and sales, digital transformations, and e-commerce. As head of our commerce team, Sebastiaan helps clients accelerate the growth of their digital capabilities.

Jarrod Hermer

Head of Technology

Jarrod joined Touchsides to design and manage the product development sector of the company. Today, he is responsible for managing our team of software developers who create innovative solutions for traders in rural areas.

Lawrence Joffe

Head of Data Engineering

Lawrence leads the data engineering team at Touchsides. He is driven to build scalable solutions for all stakeholders and has successfully launched technology start-ups and businesses for over 14 years.

Nicholas Simigiannis

Head of Data Science

Nicholas is inspired by innovation and technology, with a particular interest in data science and artificial intelligence. He has over 15 years’ experience as a data analytics specialist, business strategist, and project manager.

Ilan Sparrius

Head of Global Deployment and Global Product Owner

Ilan has more than 20 years’ experience in FMCG and retail. She is passionate about being the interface between business stakeholders and technology teams, and prides herself in finding innovative solutions to business problems.