The news that the Public Investment Corporation (PIC), which manages the Government Employees Pension Fund, and Growthpoint Properties have entered into an agreement to acquire in equal proportions the iconic Cape Town V&A Waterfront is like the return of “boerewors and koeksisters, or like South African apple pie”, says Cape Chamber of Commerce president Michael Bagraim.
While he says the chamber never loses an opportunity to encourage foreign investment, he feels that the V&A is a bit like Cape Point: it somehow should belong in South Africa, he argues.
“It is the jewel in the crown of the Cape and now it is coming home.”
Growthpoint and the PIC will invest nearly R10 billion to buy the financial interests in Lexshell 44 General Trading from Dubai World subsidiary Istithmar World and London & Regional Properties, with provision for the acquisition of the remaining ordinary shares held by Lexshell’s empowerment shareholders.
These include Tsa Rona Investments, Decorum, the Western Cape Women’s Investment Alliance, Kgontsi Investments and the Cape Empowerment Trust, as well as other community organisations.
Bagraim says he understands that there will be significant investment in expansion of retail and office space and predicts that many new permanent jobs will be created at the V&A Waterfront.
When Transnet sold the V&A Waterfront five years ago to the British and Dubai consortium, then Transnet chief executive Maria Ramos said there had been “no basis in law to exclude foreign-based companies” from the deal.
The bulk of the asset had been held by Transnet pension funds at the time. Now the deal has the pensions of all state departments involved. The worm has turned 180 degrees.
Singapore ties
South Africa, and Cape Town in particular, will benefit from closer ties with Singapore as a result of a visit next month by a high-powered delegation of 150 people, made up of business people in search of opportunities, business students and artists.
Representatives of Spotlight Singapore, an organisation formed to forge cultural and business bonds with other cities, intended at first to connect with Johannesburg, known to it as the financial capital of South Africa, but decided on Cape Town instead, mainly because of resemblances between the two port cities, which attract tourists as well as trade.
The result will be a visit next month by business people looking for opportunities in trading and investment in the Western Cape, performing artists and musicians, some of whom will put on the premiere of a musical epic, Selamat, by Singapore composer Iskandar Ismail and poet Edwin Thumboo, and business students from Singapore’s Nanyang Technology University and Temasek Polytechnic, who will link up with the University of Cape Town.
Singapore has already formed similar relationships with Hong Kong, Tokyo and Moscow. One of the reasons for coming to South Africa is that South Africa is about to join the Bric grouping of Brazil, Russia, India and China.
The impetus for all this comes from Spotlight Singapore, originally started to showcase Singapore artists and their work, which has been expanded to an organisation using cultural diplomacy to open a market for business development. It will announce its next target country next month, which seems likely to be Brazil, with which Cape Town is already developing ties as a result of hosting Brazilian soccer fans during the World Cup and the revival of the Cape to Rio yacht race.
The Spotlight Singapore visit is due to take place from March 16 to 19. Lyndon Yeo, the director of Asian Culture Enterprise, who was part of the original delegation that decided on the link with Cape Town, said they had felt at home in the city.
Among other advantages, they found it an attractive destination in which to combine a business visit with a holiday
It was an advantage that Singapore Airways provided a direct connection between the two cities, as well as to Johannesburg. It was likely to lead to a tourism upsurge in winter – Cape Town’s low season – to escape the oppressive heat in Singapore.
Italtile
The death of Italtile chief executive Gianpaolo Ravazzotti last week in a plane crash that also claimed the lives of eight other people who worked for it or were associated with it, has left a hole not only in the Ravazzotti family, but at the company too.
The family and the company are closely intertwined. Gianni Ravazzotti, Gianpaolo’s father, established the business 40 years ago and then handed the reins to his son five years ago.
Italtile is a retailer of imported and local ceramic tiles, sanitaryware and bathroom accessories and is one of the largest purchasers of ceramic tiles in the world.
Ravazzotti senior established the business, grew it to the substance at which it could list on the JSE in 1988, refocused it on retail after the ceramic manufacturing operation was sold, expanded its operations outside South Africa and was instrumental in growing the business to a turnover of R2.75 billion last year from R788 million in 2001, so it must have been a fitting reward to see the reins of chief executive passed to his son.
Gianpaolo Ravazzotti was appointed chief executive in February 2006 as part of the company’s long-term leadership plans.
This surely makes it that much more difficult to separate the grief with what now needs to be done to keep the company on track and grow as shareholders expect.
Yesterday it was announced that Ravazzotti senior would take over as executive chairman to manage the business.
His experience and ability is evident, and having pioneered the ceramic tile category in South Africa, he has the mettle to take the company forward. page 3
Edited by Peter DeIonno. With contributions from Donwald Pressly, Audrey D’Angelo and Samantha Enslin-Payne.