About
Dawn Nathan‑Jones is a South African entrepreneur who turned a small three‑car operation called Imperial Car Rental into the global brand now known as Europcar. Over more than three decades she rose from frontline employee to chief executive, steering the company through rapid expansion across southern Africa and earning a reputation as one of the country’s most dynamic business leaders. Today she channels that experience into Over the Rainbow, a social enterprise that equips start‑ups with training, mentoring and networks, and she serves as a long‑standing judge for the Santam Women of the Future Awards. Television viewers also recognise her as one of the five investor “Sharks” on Shark Tank South Africa, where her straight‑talking style and willingness to back bold ideas inspired thousands of budding founders.
Before Fame
Dawn was born in Durban on 4 August and grew up in a close‑knit Jewish family that encouraged initiative and hard work. After school she took business administration diplomas (MAP and EDP) rather than a traditional university degree, preferring practical learning to theory. At 21 she accepted a temporary booking‑agent job with Imperial Car Rental, then little more than a depot with three vehicles. She washed cars, handled phones and chased late returns—whatever kept the doors open. Those first years taught her small steps, taken daily, turn into big momentum. By her early thirties she was the operations director; by her forties the CEO, taking the rebranding to Europcar and brokering partnership deals with airlines, hotels and tourist boards that placed South African car rental on the international map.
Trivia
- First sale: the very first rental contract Dawn wrote out was to a young backpacker who arrived with only traveller’s cheques—she still keeps a photocopy of that docket in her study as a reminder of humble beginnings.
- Nickname in the depot: colleagues styled her “The Dynamo” because she learned to refuel, valet and even change tyres faster than most mechanics when the fleet was tiny.
- Reality‑show nerves: before filming the pilot of Shark Tank SA she practiced giving 30‑second feedback to her bathroom mirror every morning for a month so she could sound decisive under studio lights.
- Giving back: animals are close to her heart; she has fostered several rescue dogs and once auctioned her prized vintage Mini to raise funds for the Cape of Good Hope SPCA.
- Lifelong learner: she is teaching herself isiZulu on a language app because many early Imperial customers were local drivers who helped her master industry slang.
Family Life
Balancing work with motherhood has influenced Dawn’s leadership style. She has a son, Daniel, born in 2006, and is divorced. When Daniel was little she frequently took him on Saturday depot tours, converting the car‑wash tunnel into a game so she could complete paperwork as he played. As a single parent she advocates flexible work policies and openly shares the guilt she once felt missing school events while closing late‑night deals. Her family circle also includes two rescue dogs and a tortoise named Turbo, all adopted after episodes of Shark Tank sparked public interest in pet charities. Faith and community remain important: she supports several Johannesburg synagogues and speaks at women‑in‑business breakfasts organised by the South African Jewish Board of Deputies.
Associated With
On Shark Tank South Africa Dawn sat alongside Gil Oved, Marnus Broodryk, Vinny Lingham and powerhouse marketing mogul Chris Abrahamse. Her investment focus leans toward female‑founded ventures and businesses that create jobs in under‑served townships. Off‑screen she collaborates with Lesley Waterkeyn—co‑founder of Over the Rainbow—on the Golden Circle Mentorship programme, guiding small‑business owners through monthly peer sessions. She is also a vocal supporter of the Entrepreneurs’ Organisation South Africa chapter and often appears on panels with venture capitalist Vinny Lingham to champion tech exports. Entrepreneurs she has backed range from a biodegradable‑packaging startup in Cape Town to an e‑commerce fashion label run by two sisters in Soweto, proving her belief that world‑class companies can start anywhere with the right guidance.
