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The Relocated South African | Emigration stories

Jan Hugo - Emigration stories expert

The show for navigating emigration from South Africa for a better future. Join host Jan Hugo as he shares authentic emigration stories from South Africans who"ve taken the leap. You"ll hear about what drove their decision to leave, the mistakes they made, and how they"ve built new lives abroad. We"ll explore everything from the emotional reality of leaving friends and family behind, to the challenges of emigrating to a foreign country. Relocating isn"t always simple, but this show will provide

society & culture documentary

All Episodes

00:50:37

From Springs to Taiwan to London: Why South Africa Is...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/10/05

Quinton Pullinger’s story is anything but a straight line.He grew up in Springs, South Africa, trained as a goldsmith, and then took an unexpected leap to Taiwan after seeing an advert to teach English. What he thought would be a one-year adventure became nearly nine years.In Taiwan he learned Mandarin, built a career in the bicycle industry, travelled extensively and learned how to adapt to a completely different culture. He eventually moved into senior roles, including an eight-and-a-half-year

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00:48:12

From South Africa to Chile: Love, Language and a New...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/09/28

Wynand Kuhn's move to Chile was never part of a grand plan.Born and raised in Upington, Wynand was working in the restaurant industry in Durban when his brother-in-law invited him to Chile in 2005 to help set up a South African-themed restaurant.He arrived knowing almost no Spanish. Then he met the woman who would become his wife — and decided to stay.More than 20 years later, Wynand lives with his wife and three sons near Santiago and has built an international career in business and renewable

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00:45:32

South Africa, UK, Singapore... And Back to Cape...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/09/21

Tracey Shearer left South Africa in 2003 with an Irish passport, a printer and no real plan beyond seeing what life abroad had to offer.What followed was a 13-year journey through the UK and Singapore before eventually returning to Cape Town.Tracey grew up on Johannesburg's East Rand and spent 13 years running a design agency with her sister before deciding it was time to leave. In London, her original entrepreneurial plans didn't work out, and she eventually found her way into maritime recruitment,

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00:43:55

From Durban to Budapest: A South African Finding Home...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/09/14

Connor Jackson was born in Durban, spent much of his childhood in Tanzania, returned to South Africa, and then unexpectedly found himself building a life in Hungary.At 18, Connor went to Hungary on a Rotary exchange programme. He didn't choose Hungary as his first option, but what began as a one-year adventure became a life-changing experience.He returned to South Africa after the exchange, started studying at Stellenbosch University, but soon realised that he wanted to return to Hungary. He

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00:55:03

From Green Card Lottery to HR Director: Starting...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/09/07

Andreas Pyper's journey to America began almost by accident. In 1997, he and a group of friends entered the US Green Card Lottery as a joke. His wife Amanda won. A few years later, they packed up their lives in South Africa and moved to California.What followed was anything but easy.Andreas arrived in America as an experienced HR manager, but found himself starting again at the bottom. His first job was as an HR filing clerk. He had no US credit history, no professional network and no company

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00:46:11

22 Years in Japan: Why This South African Still Wants...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/09/03

James Whelan was born and raised in Johannesburg before moving to London in 1998. Five years later, after meeting his Japanese partner, he moved to Japan for what was supposed to be one year.More than two decades later, he's still there.James is now married, has three children, works in recruitment and has permanent residency in Japan. But despite building a successful life in Tokyo, he still feels a powerful connection to South Africa and says that if circumstances allowed it, he would move

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00:54:21

27 Years in America: Why He's Building a Base Back in...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/08/31

Andries Coetzee left South Africa for the United States in 1999 to do a PhD. His plan was simple: complete his studies and return home.Instead, 27 years later, he is still in America.After completing his PhD at the University of Massachusetts, Andries joined the University of Michigan, where he has built a successful academic career. What began as a temporary move became a life in the United States.But his connection to South Africa never disappeared.After becoming an American citizen, Andries found

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00:43:33

From Johannesburg to Australia: Why Olaf Duve Chose...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/08/27

Olaf Duve has lived in four countries, built an international career and ultimately settled in Sydney with his wife and three children.Growing up in Johannesburg, Olaf left South Africa at 18 to study in Germany before spending eight years in the UK. After a decade in Europe, he returned to South Africa to join his family's logistics business, eventually helping grow and sell the company.Then, with three young children, a casual conversation over a braai planted the idea of Australia.Olaf had never

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00:44:31

From Johannesburg to America: Taking Americans to...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/08/24

When Murray Collier left South Africa for the United States, the plan was simple: gain some international experience and eventually decide what came next.Reality turned out to be very different.Despite a strong career in South Africa, Murray spent 18 months searching for work after arriving in Chicago. It was a lonely and financially difficult period that tested both him and his wife. From sharing a tiny studio apartment with Airbnb guests to eventually building a successful corporate career, his

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00:44:47

From South Africa to Malta: Finding Opportunity on a...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/08/20

When Merle-Louise first arrived in Malta, she wanted to get straight back on the plane. Fifteen years later, she can't imagine calling anywhere else home. After building a successful career in hospitality, event management and running her own conference business in South Africa, Merle-Louise faced difficult business challenges that ultimately led her to consider a new chapter overseas. What began as a reluctant move has become a passionate mission to help other South Africans discover

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00:39:29

From Dubai Back to South Africa: Why This Doctor Came...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/08/17

Most South African doctors leave. Dr. Casper Joubert did the opposite.After qualifying at Stellenbosch University, Casper and his wife—also a doctor—built successful medical careers in Dubai before moving to Mauritius. Like many South African professionals, they embraced the opportunities that came with working overseas.But after more than a decade abroad, they made a surprising decision.They came home.Today, Casper is completing his specialist training in Occupational Medicine at Tygerberg Hospital

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00:41:45

From Cape Town to the Netherlands: Taking a Leap into...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/08/13

What happens when opportunity knocks later in life? Do you stay where you're comfortable—or do you take the leap?For Wendy Minnie and her family, the answer was clear.After successful careers in South Africa, Wendy and her husband spent more than a year researching life in the Netherlands before making one of the biggest decisions of their lives. With a teenage son, adult daughters, and decades of life already established in South Africa, this wasn't a decision made lightly.Today, Wendy

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00:46:24

From Johannesburg to Ireland: Building Community Far...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/08/10

When Berilyn Teeling moved from South Africa to Ireland, she wasn't just looking for a better life—she ended up creating one of Ireland's largest celebrations of South African culture.After growing up in Johannesburg, spending a year as an exchange student in Paraguay and later marrying into an Irish family, Berilyn and her husband made the bold decision to relocate to Ireland with their young son and just three suitcases.Finding work during a recession wasn't easy, but through

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00:43:00

From Cape Town to Brazil... and now Bali-Ep 79 with...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/08/06

From Cape Town to Brazil... and now Bali.Janlo van den Heever has never been afraid to challenge conventional thinking.After building a successful career with Red Bull in South Africa, he relocated to São Paulo, Brazil, before returning home to be closer to family. But the experience had changed him. He immersed himself in startups, technology, cryptocurrency and remote work, eventually asking a bigger question:If work is no longer tied to a location, why should life be?Today, Janlo, his wife and

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00:49:57

From Port Elizabeth to Melbourne: Building a New Life...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/08/03

Duncan Goldsmith made the life-changing decision to leave South Africa in 1986—long before emigration became commonplace. Nearly four decades later, he reflects on what it really takes to build a successful life abroad.Born and raised in Port Elizabeth, Duncan began his career in banking before an opportunity in information technology opened the door to Australia. Arriving in Melbourne with his wife, two young children and little more than determination, he embraced a country that would eventually

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00:47:12

From Cape Town to China: A South African Author's New...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/07/30

Crime novelist, screenwriter and creative writing graduate James Fouché has swapped Cape Town for central China, where he's beginning a completely new chapter—not only in his career, but in his family's life.After years of building businesses in South Africa, publishing crime novels and teaching online, James made the leap to China to teach English at a medical university. His wife and three homeschooled children will soon join him, turning what began as a solo adventure into a family

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00:49:33

From Pretoria to Poland: Finding Home in Unexpected...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/07/27

After 25 years abroad, Retha Jacobs has built a life across three countries—but South Africa has never left her heart.Growing up in Pretoria, Retha took the road less travelled. She skipped university after school, moved to London with friends, later completed degrees in Human Movement Science and Neuroscience, and eventually found herself in Poland—a country she knew almost nothing about before falling in love with its mountains, culture and people.Over the past decade she's built businesses in

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00:58:47

From South Africa to the World: Lessons in Leadership...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/07/23

Dr. Deepak Bhootra spent 15 years building a career in South Africa before taking that experience across Singapore, India and eventually the United States.Born in India and raised around the world thanks to his father's work as a forensic pathologist, Deepak arrived in South Africa in the early 1990s and quickly discovered a country that would shape the rest of his life.Today he's based in Houston, where he coaches business leaders, entrepreneurs and sales professionals around the world. But

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00:47:52

Life's Way of Bringing You Magic —Ep 74 with Werner...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/07/20

Werner Trieloff left the Free State at 21, chased whiskey and languages through Scotland and London, then followed a Brazilian love story to Porto Alegre in 2008 with only enough Portuguese to order a beer. Nearly two decades later he runs a business connecting Africa, Brazil, Europe and the US — despite qualifying as a CA and never doing a single day of actual accounting since.Jan and Werner get into Brazil's brutal tax bureaucracy (rules can change ten times a day), the WhatsApp group of 55+

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00:46:12

Five Years of Visa Limbo, No Couch Included —Ep 73...

The Relocated South African | Emigration stories ·

2026/07/16

Justin Levitt grew up in Welkom and Cape Town, toured the country as guitarist in rock band Red Tape Riot, then built a career in SEO.In 2019 he followed a partner to the Netherlands, landing in Amsterdam just two weeks before COVID lockdown hit.What followed was six unsettled years: a relationship that didn't survive lockdown isolation, a company sponsorship that evaporated when the business went bankrupt, and a year spent without a couch because he never knew if his contract would be

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94 results

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