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Starting a new tourism business?

The word ‘travel’ is enough to get many people’s hearts beating faster. Ensuring visitors to your own country have a memorable experience can be just as rewarding as seeking new adventures in unknown destinations – and, with South Africa’s tourism industry enjoying its current boom, opportunities in this dynamic sector abound.

Business Tools:

This information was kindly provided by Business Partners

Is tourism entrepreneurship for you?

Yes, tourism is an exciting industry, and it does seem that South Africa, especially the Western Cape is doing well in terms of the growth of our tourism industry. However, is tourism a lucrative industry for you? Do you have the skills needed in tourism? And, do you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur in tourism? Tourism presents its own set of challenges, and these are not easy to overcome unless you have the perseverance and tenacity that is required.

And is you do have what it takes to make a success of a tourism business, which business should it be? Which sector is suitable for you? Where is there a gap? Which sectors are unsaturated, and where do opportunities exist? All too often, an accommodation establishment or tour operating business is started with hard earned savings, only to find that once the off peak season arrives in the Western Cape, you run the risk of losing all those savings because the business you have chosen is not viable.

These are some of the issues that you have to consider before taking the leap of faith to enter the tourism industry as an entrepreneur. As government, we have seen too many businesses fail and too many people losing money that they have worked very hard to earn. We would like to ensure that you make a well-informed decision before you decide to start your business.

Tourism Outreach Programme (TOPS)

Before you attend the Tourism Awareness Information session, you may want to consider attending a Tourism outreach session in your own town as part of the Tourism Outreach Programme.

THDs conduct three hour TOPS sessions in communities in all six regions of the Western Cape. These sessions will assist you in realizing the opportunities in tourism in your town. It will also be an indication whether you will benefit from the one day Tourism Awareness sessions.

It consists of three components:
1. What is tourism?
2. How can you get involved in tourism?
3. Do you have the qualities of an entrepreneur?

Tourism Awareness Information Session

By attending a full day tourism awareness information session the above questions will be discussed by the facilitator and your fellow participants. The specific modules that will be covered by this full day session are:

The broad opportunities and challenges in tourism
Policies and frameworks directing the growth of tourism in South Africa, and specifically the Western Cape
A discussion of the tools that can be used to assess your strengths and weaknesses with regard to the range of opportunities in tourism
A discussion of the tools that can be used to assess the tourism potential of an area
An identification of the specific, direct and indirect tourism opportunities in an area and associated risks
A broad overview of the South African tourism economy, and a closer overview of tourism in the Western Cape
A broad overview of the relevant statutory requirements for the different options
A broad overview of the support mechanisms, business development assistance programmes, institutional programmes and potential partnerships and networks

The information that can be received from this session is not only limited to what the facilitator can provide. One of the greatest outcomes of the session is what you learn from your fellow participants. You will soon realise that by networking with other entrepreneurs and businesses, there is a greater chance of success in tourism.

You will also discover that there is already so much information that you do have about the tourism industry that you may not be aware of. A key component of South African Tourism's Growth Strategy is strengthening our Domestic Tourism. Have you thought about your immediate community as potential tourists that have not been given the opportunity previously? And what about similar communities in other parts of the country that may want to visit the Western Cape: could they be your potential market?

During the module on assessing your strengths and weaknesses, you would have the opportunity to be introspective and look at your professional background and abilities, and draw on these strengths to explore opportunities in tourism. It may be that you would be more successful being a supplier to the tourism industry, rather than operate directly in the tourism industry. Be open to considering this alternative.

The success of tourism is in thinking laterally, since tourism spans a multitude of disciplines. This session will prompt you to think about other industries and the potential of tourism around those industries. Consider the success of the "Meetings and Conferences" component of tourism. This kind of tourism is a result of the potential in other industries.

There may be other opportunities that are waiting to be discovered. Attend the Tourism Awareness Information Session and ignite your creativity. And then ask the question. "Am I ready for the exciting, yet challenging world of tourism?"

Tourism Help Desk Agent (THDs)

If you would like to attend the Tourism Awareness Information Session, the THD in your region is the person to contact. The will take down your details for our database and notify you when a tourism awareness session is planned for your region that you can attend. Feel free to also talk to them about your business idea. They may be able to give you some suggestions, and possibly also refer you to websites, or provide you with reading material that will assist you. The THD will also supply you with reading material prior to the Tourism Awareness Information Session. Read through this information before the workshop so that you can be armed with information on the industry and have the opportunity to really contribute to the discussion, and derive maximum benefit from attending.

THDs in your region:

City of Cape Town

Catherine Colling
Tel: 021 487 6800
Email: catherinec@tourismcapetown.co.za

Nthuseng Tsoeu
Cell: 083 453 2544
Email: nthuseng@nthusengtours.co.za

West Coast

Glenda Appies
Cell: 083 691 0929
Email: glenda.a@mweb.co.za

Kiewiet Van Rooyen
Cell: 082 896 5826
Email: swartland@cornergate.com

Lorraine Cornelius
Tel: 022 912 4410
Cell: 076 015 6272
Email: goedverwachtb.telkomsa.net

Overberg

Melcolm Hendricks
Cell: 072 234 8694
Email: nishati@mwab.co.za

Trevor Titus
Cell: 072 608 9213
Fax: 028 313 2768
Email: trevistours@telkomsa.net

Cape Winelands