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Business Business Profile Cape Town is somewhat removed from the frenetic business hype of South Africa’s major financial and industrial centre, Johannesburg. However, the Western Cape accounts for 14.3% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the city is home to some of the country’s major financial institutions. These include insurance giants Old Mutual and Sanlam, financial houses like the Board of Executives, Investec, Merrill Lynch and Fedsure, and petroleum multinationals BP, Shell and Caltex (Chevron). The economic mainstays of the regional economy are manufacturing, financial and business services, trade, tourism and agriculture. Manufacturing accounts for 20.1% of the GDP, employing 9% of the workforce, while financial and business services follow fast on its heels with 17.4% of the GDP, employing 6.3%. Trade brings forth 11.1% of the GDP and employs 8.8%. Ever since the cessation of apartheid, tourism has provided employment for a massive section of the workforce (9.3%), both directly in the service industry and indirectly for street traders and other informal operatives. Cape Town receives 7.6 million foreign and domestic tourists a year and tourism accounts for 9.1% of the GDP. The agriculture industry also employs a large number of people at 9%, producing 5.9% GDP – with the emphasis being on wine production and fruit farming. A booming industry in Cape Town is the media. The city is favoured as the ideal location for international film crews, attracted by excellent foreign exchange rates, a first-rate infrastructure, a good film service industry, stunning locations, excellent weather and well-stocked modelling agencies. Other significant industries centred on Cape Town include advertising, technology and shipping. The Port of Cape Town has an annual turnover of approximately R700 million and movement of goods, based on declared customs values, is estimated to exceed R20 billion. Expansion of the port is planned. South Africa’s GDP (R800 billion) has been increasing at approximately 1% over the past four years, and the Western Cape’s Average Gross Regional Product real growth for 1990-2001 stood at 4.06% per annum, while the projected real growth for 2001-2002 is 2.5%. With an 80% adult literacy (95% in the Western Cape) and five residential universities and technikons, Cape Town boasts a highly skilled workforce. This is undoubtedly a city on the grow, annually attracting R1.1 billion foreign direct investment. The official unemployment rate for the city stands at 18.9% (17.5% for the Western Cape), which is considerably lower than the national unemployment rate of 29.3%. Cape Town’s business district is situated mainly around the city centre and Claremont, although business and industrial parks can also be found on the outskirts, such as in Durbanville, Tygerberg, Epping, Blackheath and Philippi East. The recently opened Cape Town International Conference Centre, 13th Floor, Metlife Building, 7 Coen Steytler Avenue (tel: (021) 425 0560; fax: (021) 425 0590; e-mail: info@ctconvention.co.za; website: www.capetownconvention.com), provides extensive conference space, which further stimulates foreign business interest in the city and region. The V&A Waterfront, in the heart of the city, is an extremely popular and expanding business district. The University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business (tel: (021) 406 1338; e-mail: info@gsb.uct.ac.za) is located here, producing some of the big minds in business, both for South Africa and abroad. The Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Cape Chamber House (tel: (021) 418 4300; fax: (021) 418 4302; e-mail: info@capechamber.co.za; website: www.capechamber.co.za), was founded in 1804 and is a one-stop shop for business information and advice. Business Etiquette Business practices in Cape Town and South Africa are very similar to those in the UK and USA. Despite the fact that Cape Town is more informal than Johannesburg, most industries do expect a suit and tie. The more modern or artistic industries, such as information technology and the media, tend to display a more informal attitude to dress – particularly in the summer months. However, it is advisable for foreign business visitors to maintain formality and only resort to the casual uniform of shorts, T-shirts and sandals when the after-hours entertainment begins. Business hours are 0900-1700, although many companies finish earlier on a Friday. The exchanging of business cards is an important ritual in Cape Town and a firm handshake between both men and women is common. In some instances, the African triple handshake will be used – this is a normal handshake, then a tilt to the hand is executed to clasp the fingers at a 90-degree angle – but without letting go – and then a return to a normal handshake. Socialising is a big part of the business scene in Cape Town and much business is conducted over lunch. Wine will more than likely be included and visitors should note that South African wines often have a slighter stronger alcohol content than the majority of European wines (usually nearer 13%). Admiration of the local wine will be appreciated, although over-indulgence is certainly not recommended. Capetonians pride themselves on being hospitable to foreign visitors and an invitation to a business contact’s home is not unusual. These will, more than likely, take the form of a ‘braai’ (barbecue), which tend to last throughout the entire afternoon and often into the night. Alcohol flows freely here and a gift of a bottle of wine is always appreciated, unless the host is Muslim, in which instance alcohol is strictly forbidden. In this case, a gift of chocolates, flowers or a speciality gift from the guest’s home country is more suitable. |
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