History - Crocodile Country Inn

Built in 1965 & was bought by Mr. & Mrs. Sergay who were the owners & shareholders for 33 years.
Jo-Anne Csaplar joined the company in 1990.
In 1991/1992 one wedding and two conferences were hosted in any suitable venue.
After the '94 elections a boom in the conference industry inspired the idea of a conference & wedding venue. In 1995 the Director highlighted the need for such a venue and the Le Fleur (function room) was built & turned into a huge success.
The conference sector was marked in 1999 as a record year. An obvious need for a bigger conference center and more accommodation initiated a feasibility study, -which indicated that expansion was necessary.
In November 2002 a new conference & wedding center was built – The Pavilion - as well as an additional 8 rooms. In 2004 + 56 weddings were booked for the year and on a weekly basis we hosted up to 20 conferences.
Early in 2005 the BODY Day Spa opened its doors to provide an exclusive service to our leisure market as well as a service to local patrons.
In 2005 30% shares in the company were sold to a prominent black businesswoman, Tiny Motlana.

joanne

Jo-Anne Geraldine Csaplar was born in Nelspruit South Africa on the 12th of February 1970. She completed her schooling in Sabie.
In 1992 she obtained her Small Business Advisory Bureau (Managing Small Hotel Certificate Course).
In 1988 she joined the South African Post Office as Telex Operator.
In 1989 she moved to First National Bank as a Savings Clerk.
In 1990 she joined Crocodile Country Inn as a Receptionist, within 2 years she had worked her way up to the position of General Manager of the Hotel. In 1994 she was appointed as one of the Directors, she became a shareholder in 1996 and in 1998 she was appointed as Managing Director of Crocodile Country Inn.
In 2003 Jo-Anne Csaplar became a 100% shareholder of the hotel.
In 2004 with the boom of the Health Spa Industry, Jo-Anne opened BODY Day Spa, which is located on the property of Crocodile Country Inn.
In 2005 she sold 30% of her shares in a BEE transaction.
In 2005 she was nominated as Entrepreneur of the Year at the Business Woman Association.
She was also awarded the Cansa Woman Today title for 2005/2006. In 2005 she started an Event management and Professional organizing Company, as organizing and coordinating is her forte.

tiny

Tiny Elizabeth Sina Motlana was born in Johannesburg on the 6th of May 1965, where she started and completed her education.
Her qualifications include a Business Communication Diploma and Business Administration Certificate.
She joined her father in the family business; he was one of pioneers of setting up 'spaza' shops in and around Soweto.
In 1993 she started a business in beauty care in Alexandra, until she moved to Mpumalanga in 1995 where her husband ran a sawmill.
She established a branch of the African House Wives League of S.A in White River and organised self help projects, volunteering to assist orphans who were HIV positive, sewing classes, book clubs and fund raising functions through the help of the Head Office based in JHB.
She started working for Madiba Sawmills in White River as company secretary. She implemented ABET, HIV awareness programmes, vegetable gardens, a crèche and sporting activities.
In 2001 Tiny and her family moved back to JHB. Her business venture, Sonqoba Catering and Events Management secured a tender in one of the biggest South African Post offices in Gauteng.
In 2005 she invested in the The Crocodile Country Inn where she became Executive Director of the Company. She is currently the CEO of Hlela Events and her partner Jo-Anne Csaplar is the Executive Director.
Tiny is a member of the investment company Twsarang Holdings, Thari Investment Holdings and Business Women Association.