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FOCUS<br />
Save our Beach Huts<br />
A campaign is underway to restore <strong>Cape</strong> Town’s<br />
colourful landmarks.<br />
Credit: A Gorman Photography<br />
The Beach Huts of <strong>Cape</strong> Town have been<br />
around since the late 1800s. Over their lifetime<br />
they have changed significantly, eventually<br />
becoming the colourful huts we see today.<br />
They have always been a feature of our beaches.<br />
These structures have risen to iconic status,<br />
outgrowing their practical usefulness. Their true<br />
value lies in being an instantly recognisable image<br />
and arguably South Africa’s most iconic man-made<br />
structures. They occupy a significant portion of<br />
South Africa’s global brand image. The importance<br />
of this for attracting tourism to our country cannot<br />
be overstated.<br />
Tourism, a large source of foreign direct income,<br />
has an important role to play in alleviating poverty<br />
and creating opportunities for all South Africans.<br />
Tourism is everybody’s business.<br />
The Beach Huts have been falling into disrepair<br />
for some time. A harsh environment, complex<br />
Contact details<br />
The Beach Hut Trust:<br />
Angela Gorman<br />
Mobile: 079 504 1933<br />
Email: info@beachhuts.org.za<br />
municipal structures and more pressing socioeconomic<br />
issues have resulted in the nearcollapse<br />
of this iconic infrastructure. The Beach<br />
Huts are as important to South Africa as the<br />
Statue of Liberty or the Eiffel Tower is to New<br />
York and Paris.<br />
The SAVE OUR BEACH HUTS campaign, run<br />
by The Beach Hut Trust, is a public and private<br />
collaborative initiative. The objectives are to<br />
Preserve, Protect and Promote the Beach Huts,<br />
<strong>Cape</strong> Town’s most iconic structures. To us, they<br />
represent opportunity and hope for South<br />
Africa. To the world, they represent a reason to<br />
travel here.<br />
We aim to create employment, restore an<br />
icon, promote tourism and generate a Beach<br />
Beach Huts-inspired industry that will sustain<br />
them indefinitely. The opportunities are endless<br />
and we are calling on all businesses to see<br />
how they can help support the programme to<br />
#SaveOurBeachHuts. ■<br />
Daniel Blaauw<br />
Mobile: 081 776 6522<br />
Email: info@beachhuts.org.za<br />
39 WESTERN CAPE BUSINESS 2021