Table of contents for Issue #1 2022 in Afropolitan

Don’t you wish you had more than 24 hours on some days? I do, almost every day. Wrapping up this issue, I had high hopes of finishing it during the December holidays. This was because I planned on easing myself back to work in January, but obviously this didn’t happen. I pushed as much as I could, so much so that I did the interview for the cover issue while sitting at my grandmother’s gravesite. No, not what you’re thinking... she passed away a decade ago; I was there to clean. Time flew past and before I knew it, it was time for my interview and I was not willing to reschedule. If anything, the pandemic has taught me is that there’s never really time to pause and stop life…

The new year is usually he new year is usually a time of renewal and is the best time to take an intensive look at our skin routines. Have you been using the same cleanser and moisturiser for the last three to five years? If yes, it’s time to consider something new and fresh. Call in the professionals and make an appointment to see a skincare therapist for a consultation. Your therapist will work out a routine based on what you want to change about your skin. However, if you are very good at changing your skincare routine seasonally, then there are two important things to consider: changing your moisturiser and using SPF. Lamelle professionals advise not to change your moisturiser too soon and to make daily use of SPF.…

The six-day event held in Welgemoed, Cape Town ran from 14 to 20 February, and was Strauss & Co’s first offering for the year. The event was put together to coincide with the Investec Cape Town Art Fair. The group believes figurations are a powerful thread linking historical, traditional, modernist and contemporary art on the African content. ‘Giving Direction’ was a non-selling exhibition, with a public viewing held on 16 February. “This exhibition is not a historical survey of figurative art from the continent,” said researcher and exhibition co-curator at Strauss & Co, Leigh Leyde. “Rather, it aims to ask questions and contribute to the dialogue around Africanness as an essential identity marker, and to showcase a postmodern contemporary art praxis that uses figuration as a means of articulating, critiquing…

LIVING THE ULTIMATE KETO LIFESTYLE: A SOUTH AFRICAN GUIDE AND COOKBOOK Having a healthy lifestyle can be daunting owing to information overload about diets, and knowing what works isn’t always easy to find. Writer and founder of Keto Lifestyle South Africa, Hendrik Marais, believes that while nutrition is important, a healthy lifestyle must find the balance between sleep, stress management, exercise and nutrition. Living the Ultimate Keto Lifestyle introduces Hendrik’s practices of following a keto diet and details how to achieve your weight-loss goals. The book features healthy recipes, meals plans and meal ideas. Living the Ultimate Keto Lifestyle: A South African Guide and Cookbook retails for R380. TWO TONS OF FUN Writer of #ZuptasMustFall, Fred Khumalo, is back with yet another humourous read that reflects on the lives of…

Born and raised in Cape Town, the loud-minded, yet quiet-mouthed multi-faceted Annette Skaap retired her 10-year career in the aviation industry to focus on another part of tourism with the opening of her luxury hotel in Khayelitsha; a first-of-its-kind four-star establishment called The Spade Boutique Hotel and Spa. Inspired by her own travels as a flight attendant, Annette always had the vision of creating luxurious experiences for people despite the location. Her vision was to establish luxury accommodation that would offer opulence in an unexpected place. “I have travelled for work and leisure and seen beautiful parts of the globe,” she said. “Bali was a culture shock and a huge inspiration for my hotel, as they use what they have to create a thriving tourism destination. I wanted to bring…

These impressive short-term returns have improved the risk-return trade-off from equities. For the year, SA inflation-linked bonds (up 15.5%) and nominal bonds (up 8.4%) also comfortably outperformed SA inflation (up 5.9%) and SA cash (up 3.6%). SA property (up 36.9%) clawed back much of its prior year’s underperformance, and foreign property (up 39.9%) comfortably outperformed foreign bonds (up just 1.1%). PERFORMANCE DRIVERS The strong returns from riskier assets were boosted by global monetary policy remaining exceptionally loose for longer than warranted, and economic growth still surprising on the upside. For much of the year, forward guidance from the US Federal Reserve indicated no interest rate increases till at least 2024, while global economic growth in 2021, at an expected 5.6%, is likely to be at a pace not seen since…

Industry experts Greg Gatherer and Sihle Dlamini discuss what customer engagement will look like this year: businesses’ interactions with their customers have changed dramatically over the last couple of years. As a result, businesses have been forced to rethink their strategies as their models are centred on understanding their customers and adding value. By developing a customer engagement strategy that puts the consumer at the centre of all decisions, businesses can maintain brand relevance and cultivate stronger loyalty. 1 LINEAR JOURNEY MAPPING IS DEAD While customer experience teams can set up specific journeys for their customers, doing so means losing out on personalised journeys. Each individual interaction offers a multitude of possible directions, making the visualisation of an engagement process more of a spider’s web of potential journeys. Moreover, mapped…

This was the last thing the his was the last thing the country had expected to hear as a possible cause of load shedding, especially since we’ve become accustomed to hearing that Eskom’s infrastructure is too old to handle electricity demands, there’s not enough coal supply, or the coal is wet because of rain. However, in November 2021, Eskom Group Chief Executive André de Ruyter revealed the Lethabo power station in Vereeniging, Gauteng, had been sabotaged. Lethabo is Eskom’s best-performing coal plant, so its failure raised alarms. According to Engineering News, nothing was stolen at the station, which is why De Ruyter suggested that sabotage was involved rather than a common act of crime. He also added that he had difficulties believing this incident was purely coincidental. In a report…

Mont Blanc: Explorer Ultra Blue Mont Blanc: Explorer Ultra Blue forms part of the brand’s Explorer line, first launched in 2019. Inspired by the colour of the sky and seas, Mont Blanc recognises blue as the colour that invites discovery and exploration, and indeed the scent proves this. Jordi Fernandez, Olivier Pescheux and Antonie Maisondieu of Givaudan worked on the fragrance, putting together citrus, woody and marine notes. Mont Blanc: Explorer Ultra Blue retails from R999. Rolex Oyster Perpetual FOR HIM The Oyster Perpetual Cosmograph Daytona boasts a dial made from metallic meteorite, a rare natural material from outer space with black chronograph counters at three, six and nine o’clock. The Cosmograph Daytona with 18-carat white gold is fitted with a Monobloc Cerachrom bezel in black ceramic with a tachymetric…

Born in Stellenbosch, Western Cape, Zaid Osman’s love for fashion was influenced by his stay in the United States. He always loved sneakers and this was his gateway to fashion. When he moved back to South Africa, people questioned his clothing and sneakers because they hadn’t seen anything like them locally. Zaid identified a gap and decided to import sneakers from the US and sell them in South Africa. He imported everything from high-end sneaker brands and sunglasses to a host of streetwear fashion items, with 10 Deep being a big name at the time. Later, he started Grade Africa. “I got tired of making money for other people and brands and wanted to create something that represented me and the people around me; my community and Africa in the…

Ting Tang Tea is a South African family-owned tea business founded by Zanda Isaacs in 2018. The varied selection of teas are tailored to specific health and wellness concerns, and can help with anxiety, mental focus, fatigue, and low immune system function. With varieties such as Ting Tang Tea Calm, Ting Tang Tea Glow and Ting Tang Tea Focus, there is a tea for everyone. Zanda uses natural ingredients in her products, ranging from an array of sustainably sourced medicinal and flavoured herbs, spices and fruit. Hailing from Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, Zanda has always been passionate about helping people, so much so that she wanted to be a doctor. However, at the age of 10, she was already a mixologist of note, creating and experimenting with her own tea infusions. “When…

With the season of hearty meal indulgence upon us, many people are experiencing problems with their waistlines. We all feeling guilty about the unhealthy foods and drinks we consume over the winter season, and that should motivate us into staying in shape. The last thing you want is for another year to go by without getting your summer body in check. The good news is that becoming healthier doesn’t have to be difficult or take a long time, even if your body has changes dramatically over the winter weeks. With some dedication, it is possible. Deciding how to get into shape can be tough. There are several ways to assist in the journey towards a healthier lifestyle and working with a personal trainer is one way to ensure you are…

Tell us briefly about ell us briefly about your journey leading up to your current role as CEO of FNB Money Management. I was born in the small town of Nelspruit into a typical middle-income family. Both my parents were educators. I was fortunate to be raised in a household that openly discussed finances, which I later found out was not the norm in most homes. I understood the importance of working for money and the rewards as a result of saving; principles that are still applicable in my role today. I studied actuarial sciences at Wits University. It was tough. Tuition fees were expensive and my parents had limited funding. Post-qualification, however, I was fortunate to land a job as a graduate analyst at FNB within the Credit Card…

Matsi Modise, Chairperson of the South African Start-up Act steering committee and Vice-Chairperson of SiMODiSA – together with steering committee members Tanya van Lill and Shelley Lotz from the Southern African Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (SAVCA) – reflected on the policy changes and what can be expected in 2022. Shelley shared that 2021 saw two changes to policy, which have had direct impacts on the country’s start-ups: the relaxation of exchange controls for loop structures and the scrapping of Section 12J of the Income Tax Act. She explained that the former impacts the ability of start-ups to raise capital offshore. “Prior to the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) issuing a circular at the beginning of the year, there was a prohibition on creating loop structures. Now, when start-ups…

Leadership expert Debbie Goodman, also Group CEO of Jack Hammer, a global group of executive search, talent advisory and leadership coaching companies based in Cape Town, says that on the surface, an attitude of keeping calm and carrying on has prevailed until now. People, regardless of their level in the corporate hierarchy are not okay. As a result, companies are increasingly putting in place proactive mental wellbeing and support programmes above and beyond anything they have done in the past. “Through our work in the USA, South Africa and the rest of the African continent, it is clear some companies are taking this matter very seriously, devising specific mental health and wellbeing strategies and policies in recognition of the problem,” said Debbie. “Additionally, some companies are taking the novel approach…

A few weeks ago, I suffered what is commonly known as a mini stroke, medically referred to as a transient ischemic attack (TIA). My symptoms included sudden numbness on the right side of my face, arm, and leg; sudden trouble seeing in both eyes; sudden trouble walking; sudden dizziness; and loss of balance and coordination. When I realised that I couldn’t get the key in the door or use my finger to start up my touch screen phone, I knew something wasn’t right. I had a slight headache, but no more than what I could normally handle. I thought I was just exhausted after a long day, took an aspirin and went to bed. Because of lockdown, we are on high alert for the Covid-19 virus 24/7 and have in…