André Pietersen
Meet André, our Founder and Head Arborist.
The hero, the legend, the man... The Boss Man
He was born in Bredasdorp and raised a proud Napierdorper.
A nature enthusiast at heart and the youngest of four siblings, he and his dad spent their days on the farm which is where his love of nature, trees and the earth was nurtured.
André loves people so much he even studied them! He was a Maties man for two years before he decided he would like to serve the community and earth in a better way!
We have been blessed with a hard-working and natural business man! Hustling from an early age, washing cars or mowing lawns - the point is he means business.
André has a deeply rooted passion for trees and has been working in the tree care and forestry industry for almost 8 years and loves every single day of it!
He is a man of many talents but as you can see, a family man at heart. He is the proud father to two amazing lil humans, Rae and Bjorn, who keeps us all on our toes 😉 And the loving husband and business partner of our CEO, Shelby. This dynamic duo lives on their little home stead on the farm and life is sweet!
His favourite part of the job is being able to serve the community and environment by doing what he loves - tree care! And working with a kick-ass team is the biggest bonus.
Being our ride or die from day one, we are honoured to have such an amazing role model and captain of our ship here at Overberg Arborists.
Shelby Pietersen
Meet Shelby, our CEO!
She was born and raised a Capetonian. She fell in love with our Head Arborist and traded the city life for Napier in a blink of an eye.
They have been living off the grid in the forest for almost 4 years. They started off living in a veggie tunnel, then lived in a tent and now live in an insane wooden house with a view that will make any influencer jealous.
She started her own business when she was only 18 years old! Not only did she run her own marketing and virtual assistance business, but this girl also has a whole Theology degree behind her.
OA was established in late 2020 where she worked part time, while running a business coaching business for women. She became an amazing mamma to the beautiful Rae and Bjorn and decided to work full time at OA as the Managing Director in 2023.
She is also a mom to 3 horses and 1 dog. She is ridiculously allergic to animals but it’s fine, she’ll just die.
She loves gardening, hates wearing shoes, and is a musician at heart. She is a lightworker with a moerse passion for saving the planet. #savetheearth
Shelby has been part of the #oacrew since 2020 and got promoted to CEO in the beginning of 2024. We have immense love and respect for our Boss Lady and it is an honour to work with her!
Mary-Anne Thorpe
Meet Mary-Anne, Your Favourite Office Ninja
She was born in Mafikeng, but grew up in Klerksdorp. She has been part of the cool kids club since 2017, when she moved to the Overberg region.
Not only is she our ninja, she is a qualified yoga teacher with over 200 hours behind her. It does not end there - if you are in need of a new profile picture or have an upcoming special event, this amazing photographer is keen to capture it. Vrou van vele talente!
She is a walking artwork - yes, we know her looks can kill - BUT, she has 31 tattoos and counting. how dope is that?!
Here is the tea - our ninja and our climber, Dan, fell in love and are the parents to the fluffiest cat, V.
Mary-Anne has been on the #oacrew for almost a year and we cannot imagine our lives without her bubbly personality or her extreme ninjaing skills!
Dan Visser
Meet Dan, our Mech Tech and Climber!
Dan was born in Joubertina, but has been a proud Napierdorper since the age of 4.
He loves being a Napierdorper so much that we think he might NEVER move. We are cool with that though, this man has got some mad skills so we are keeping him.
We have another cat lover who is the co-parent to V, along with our office ninja.
When it comes to having the most tattoos, Dan takes the cake AND eats it with what we believe might be 50+ tattoos. With that being said, he is also an amazing tattoo artist with talent that will make your Pinterest ideas look sad.
We all know that when Dan gets handed the aux, you will only be hearing heavy metal. If you want to make him melt, hand him the aux along with a lekker cuppa. He loves his coffee.
Before he joined our team, he was a mechanic for 7 years and that's how we got the two for one special.
He has been on our crew for one & a half years now and we are loving every moment of Dan the Man!
Troy hanmer
Meet Troy! - Our Climbing Apprentice.
He is a born and raised Capetonian, but somehow ended up in Napier.
His favourite season is summer and this man loves a stukkie braai. If you want to hang with Troy, you can always hit him up when you are going to the beach or planning a hike.
He is the perfect passenger as he listens to almost all types of music. He is not allergic to any animals and has two cats.
Having a slight case of OCD, you can understand why this man loves pruning and trimming.
Being on our team since 2022, you might as well call him an OG.
We are stoked to have him on our team!
BARRY LIEFBROER
Meet Barry!
He was born in Pretoria but was raised as a Harties guy. Having both a Dutch and English background, this Afrikaaner could go literally anywhere in the world, he decided Napier was where the vibes are.
Barry is down for any form of technology, machines, and gadgets. Of course, we also then had to make him the man behind our camera footage – this guy knows his stuff 😉
He claims to have been a good boy for most of his life, but we have no further comment on that.
Barry is mildly allergic to cats, so we guess that’s why he is a dog person, because who doesn’t like cats?
You can bribe him with all things green. He LOVES plants and planting them - from mixing the soil to planting the seeds – no matter what kind of plants they are.
He is our Crew Ninja and we are stoked to have him as part of our team!
marné truter
Meet Marné, our Marketing Apprentice!
She was born in the Northern Cape and raised in the Boland. She fell in love with an OG Napierdorper and ended up with us. Safe to say she is now a proud Overberger and OA team member FOREVER!
After studying law for 2 years, she switched her study path to Communication Science, from which she graduated in May this year. She got all the brains!
Her guilty pleasure is online shopping, because who doesn’t love the kick of “your parcel is out for delivery”? To win her over, make her a lekker cuppa and put on a true crime doccie.
Although she is a full-hearted cat lover, there is always space for a dog in your heart, right? She is now the new mom on the block with their pup, Isaac.
Although Marné is the newbie in the OA crew, we would not give her up for the world!
andrea terblanche
Meet Andrea, our Office Apprentice! - a recent addition to the OA Office Squad
We have another born and raised Capetonian who decided to trade the city life in 2021 and become a proud Napierdorper.
Not only is she amazing with the admin and sales, but she is also a qualified hairdresser and barber who graduated from Stellenbosch Hair Academy. Yes, that is why we all look so good. 😉
She loves being creative and to make people feel pretty and good about themselves.
She is engaged to her best friend, Francois. Back in the day they used to say “nee, ons koppel nie” but, they were always in love and decided to make it official.
One thing about her – she is Dachshund obsessed and is the proud mama of Mila, her very first Dachshund, who has her whole heart and as she says, is her whole life!
If she could have one meal for the rest of her life, it would be pasta. Any pasta, except tuna pasta. Pasta is her go-to, her life, her girl dinner. She loves trying new pasta recipes. Making it. Eating it. All of it.
Andrea joined the our team in August and she brings all the vibes to the office! We are so lucky to have you, Andrea!
francois uys
Meet Francois, the newest member of the #OACrew!
Born in Bellville and raised in Kraaifontein, he also decided to give up the city life and become a proud Napierdorper.
Four years ago, Francois made the move to Napier, where he now happily lives with his fiancé (and best friend), Andrea.
When he's not up a tree or at the gym, you’ll probably find him loving on his dachshund, Mila (a.k.a. Mielie), who, despite being "just a dog," is his baby and the apple of his eye, sorry Andrea.
He’s had a deep-rooted love for nature and the outdoors since childhood—if there was a tree around, you’d find him attempting to climb it!
Want to win him over? A Big Mac will do the trick every single time.
Francois brings his passion for trees and his zest for life to the team, always with a smile.
We are beyond stoked to have you on the team, Francois!
