Tag Archives: Judy Lain

Cape2Rio Yacht Race 2014: on the ball, putting Cape Town on the map!

Cape2Rio Yacht Race Logo Whale Cottage PortfolioI couldn’t have wished for a better birthday yesterday, having been invited to join a media sail from the Royal Cape Yacht Club, to generate publicity for the Cape2Rio 2014 Yacht Race, which starts in Cape Town on 4 January.  The 14th 3000 mile Cape2Rio Yacht Race is the ‘PR opportunity of the Year’ for Cape Town, and links to the 2014 Soccer World Cup taking place in Brazil, each of the 36 yachts taking a soccer ball.

Despite my uncertainty as to whether my guest house duties would allow me to participate, my staff gave me off, and the day could not have been more perfect for a sail, with no wind, and the temperature around 30°C.  I had been invited by Wesgro’s Chief Marketing Officer Judy Lain, and she was waiting for me with a bunch of flowers!  I thanked her for choosing such a perfect day and date for the sail!  A number of media representatives were invited, and we gathered in the ‘galley‘ at the yacht club to hear more details about the race and its participants from the Race Marketer Toni Mainprize.  The pioneering spirit and human struggle in making a yacht crossing was saluted, and it was said that Cape Town seems to have turned its back on the sea, despite it surrounding us.  I personally had not sailed in years, having been a regular weekend sailor twenty years ago.  We were encouraged to come to the Yacht Club on a Wednesday afternoon, and volunteer to crew on the yachts going out to sea.  Teams from Angola, the UK, Australia, Italy, and Germany have entered the Race.

A number of representatives of the participating boats were  present, and the idea was that we interview them on the water, the owners of Isla having madeCape2Rio Race Isla Whale Cottage Portfolio their catamaran available for the media outing.  The response had been so great that Judy and other PR executives stayed on land, as the Hendersons, owners of Isla, were very strict about the total number of persons allowed on the yacht.

The 14,8 m catamaran Isla was built by its owner Ian Henderson, and sleeps eight.  He will be putting his business interests on hold for the next year, taking his wife Elskeand their two daughters of 4 and 7 years with them on the race, and they plan to travel along the east coast of South and North America thereafter. Cape2Rio Isla Elske Whale Cottage Portfolio Elske told me that they rarely get seasick now, regularly doing outings along the coast, and sleeping on the boat when they do trips away.  Elske said she volunteers to helm, as it makes her less likely to become sea sick.   She laughed, saying she is quick to delegate the food preparation when she feels queasy.  She has found homeopathic medication to counter the sea Continue reading →

Restaurant Review: La Parada Bar de Tapas Bree Street is Español puro!

La Parada Kitchen with Bull head Whale Cottage PortfolioOn Thursday the massive new La Parada Bar da Tapas opened on Bree Street, the second outlet with this brand name in the Harbour House group. It is a restaurant and bar that will attract custom due to the extraordinarily low prices of its food and beverages, in a block that now includes Africa Café, Bistrot Bizerca, HQ,  Awestruck, Simply Asia, The House of Machines, &Union, and Birds Boutique Café.  La Parada means stop or standstill, a clever name for one to break away from a busy day, even though one can imagine that it will become very noisy as it becomes popular due to its low prices.

La Parada is in a building that has been extensively renovated, and La Parada has taken the ground floor.  A night club is set to open in the basement in two weeks, I was told by a waiter, and a glass floor in one section will attract attention to what will be happening below.   One cannot help but notice the restaurant on Bree Street, diagonally opposite &Union, as it has windows opening along almost all of the street frontage, with counter seating inside and outside.  It was very cold yesterday, and there was no place to hide from the cold wind inside the Continue reading →

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 10 September

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*   The Earth’s magnetic pole is slowly shifting, from North to South, and vice versa, and may mean that the Northern Lights will no loner be seen in the Northern Hemisphere, and that mammals such as whales which navigate via the magnetic poles may change their migration pattern.

*   Western Cape Tourism Minister Alan Winde dived with gentle cow-sharks off Simonstown yesterday, to showcase a little known experience, and to create awareness for the province’s ‘Water Connects us’ theme for Tourism Month. The Minister said that the province’s water-themed experiences enhanced its position as one of the country’s most popular destinations, more than 1 million tourists having visited the Western Cape last year.  Provincial marketing agency Wesgro will showcase a variety of the province’s unique and family fun water-based experiences, including its 20 (out of a total Continue reading →

Wesgro Chief Marketing Officer Judy Lain a breath of fresh air for Tourism!

Wesgro Judy Lain Whale Cottage PortfolioI was recently told that Wesgro had finally appointed a Marketing head after looking since April 2012.  I called Judy Lain, its new Chief Marketing Officer, and was able to set up an appointment to meet her after her trip to South America.  We agreed to meet last Friday at Café Paradiso, on Judy’s recommendation.

All I knew about Judy was that she was better known as Judy During, and had run an advertising agency called 34 Woman, focusing on generating information about women’s purchasing behaviour, being responsible for not only FMCG but also big ticket brand decisions in their households.  Prior to that she worked at Inviseo Media, at Bester Burke Underground, and at draftfcb, therefore having a practical marketing and advertising background.   Our telephonic interaction in setting up the meeting was very different to the bureaucracy I experienced when I arranged to meet with Wesgro CEO Nils Flaatten.  Judy answered the phone herself, sounded friendly and bubbly, and decided that we should meet over lunch.

We had forgotten to describe one another over the phone, but we both Continue reading →