This year is looking good for events, with the G20 Summit being held in Johannesburg, and this will help to boost the economy
There is optimism that South Africa’s economy will experience a growth boost this year after a difficult few years.
The Reserve Bank started its rate-cutting cycle in September and the effects of lower rates should be stronger this year.
Property groups, including the owners of conferencing centres and event spaces, look set for a boom.
Corporate and government conferencing is an integral part of South Africa’s private sector. These events support the hotels that host them and bring masters of the industry together. With, for example, more than 5 000 hotel rooms surrounding Joburg’s Sandton Convention Centre, that’s big business for hospitality.
It will be exciting to see the South African Property Owners Association (Sapoa) meeting, which will take place from 30 September to 2 October at Sun City, grow.
With listed property outperforming other traditional asset classes such as equities, bonds and cash last year, Sapoa should attract investors and give the organisers an opportunity to improve the conference’s content.
Other property conferences in the pipeline include the Reside Summit, which focuses on residential property and will take place on 9 and 10 July at the Sandton Convention Centre, Joburg, as well as the IHS Affordable Housing Conference and the Township Retail Investment Summit, which will both take place later in the year.
Opened in 2000, Sandton Convention Centre is a top-end real estate asset and the largest conferencing facility in Joburg’s primary business node. It will thrive if confidence in South Africa’s economy builds.
The centre has a strong history of service. Multiple events can be staged there simultaneously, with 22 000m2 of flexible space and 11 000 parking bays. It can also accommodate up to 10 000 visitors. It offers a range of room capacities, from a 10-seater function room to the Pavilion, which can accommodate 4 500 guests.
The Capital Empire, also in Sandton and owned by The Capital Hotels & Apartments, which tends to host more specialised conferences for up to 250 people, is also expecting a stellar year. CEO and founder of The Capital Marc Wachsberger says he is positive about what 2025 will offer.
“South Africa’s corporate conferencing industry is of a world-class standard. The pandemic taught many operators what to change or add to their offerings to compete and thrive. Post Covid, our sector has enjoyed a boost and I believe this momentum will continue into 2025,” he says.
During the pandemic conferences could only be held online. This changed when restrictions were lifted and operators could accommodate the pent-up demand.
In this column I recently discussed the expansion project at The Westcliff Four Seasons Hotel in Joburg. It is building a 400-seater ballroom to complement the 100-seater already in place. The first South African Club Med resort is also under construction in Tinley Manor, KwaZulu-Natal, and they are building a 500-seater conference centre.
The demand for event space is there and it is growing.
“The different types of conference centres are mostly primed for success in 2025. We have big exhibition-type venues, like Gallagher Estate and the Cape Town International Convention Centre [CTICC], which are stable, while they offer high-value conferences.
“I’d especially expect the CTICC to grow in 2025. It’s a large operation and Cape Town is becoming more and more popular on the global stage,” Wachsberger says.
The CTICC offers 140 000m2 of subdivisible conference, meeting and exhibition space. I spoke to CEO Taubie Motlhabane, who mentioned that, for the 2023-24 financial year (ended June 2024), the CTICC made R400.7 million in revenue, and R82.5 million EBITDA, a 96.5% improvement on the target of R42 million. EBITDA, or earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, is a metric that provides insight into a company’s profitability.
Profit was an impressive R242.7 million, up from R17.6 million in the previous year. Motlhabane mentioned that, since 2003, the CTICC has contributed R66.9 billion to GDP and R58 billion gross geographic product — its cumulative contribution to the Western Cape.
In the past year, 12 721 jobs have been created or sustained in the sector, nationally, with a total of 169 034 jobs created since 2003.
The CTICC, which can forward-book up to the 2029-30 financial year, has close to 400 events lined up — 20% of these international. The current value of this book is estimated at R1.5 billion.
Considering that, in the 2023-24 financial year, the CTICC hosted 368 events with 310 985 attendees, this is an important asset for our economy.
The indirect gains for businesses in this sector are also important. When it comes to procurement spending, they spent R259 million on B-BBEE suppliers, R235 million on local suppliers and a large portion on women-owned businesses.
Hotels will also see an increase in their occupancy numbers, thanks to these events.
“We at Capital Hotels & Apartments have a hybrid model where we rent living and working space for corporates. A group of engineers might rent from us for a six-month project,” Wachsberger says.
“We also have conferencing facilities at most of our developments. We were privileged to enjoy a superb year for our business.”
Capital Hotels’ strategy involves opening aparthotels and developments in South Africa’s secondary cities, where hospitality-focused real estate has been scarce. These include Gqeberha and Nelspruit.
The group is also investigating underserviced towns and areas on the outskirts of Cape Town and other parts of the Western Cape. These include Tiger Valley, Stellenbosch, Durbanville and Blouberg.
These confidence boosts for convention centre businesses and hotels need support from economic activity and a stable government.
“This is the best time, relatively, to be developing hotels. There has been a supply shortage for a long period and we have our best government in place for some time. Yes, interest rates are still high, but they won’t be high forever,” Wachsberger says.
The Joburg CBD will also be in for an exciting period — it will host the G20 Summit in November.
“I expect the G20 to lead to full hotels, especially in Sandton. At this stage, details of the event still need to be released. The G20 is a meeting point for the world. It’s like Davos in that it’s an opportunity for influential people to meet each other in one city,” Wachsberger says.
The G20 Summit is a coup for our country and hotels will benefit significantly. Not only will their rooms be full but they will also have a chance to hold sideline conferences.
But Sandton need not be the only place in Gauteng to participate. The non-profit organisation Jozi My Jozi (JMJ) has been made a key partner in this event, which aims to showcase the city and country to the world.
A joint statement released in October said JMJ, the Gauteng provincial government and the City of Johannesburg had concluded a memorandum of understanding for the event and related conferences. With world leaders converging in Johannesburg, presenting a polished image was critical for the city.
Robbie Brozin, JMJ director and cofounder of Nando’s, said the summit was a transformative event for the city and continent.
“The G20 Summit in 2025 is more than a global event; it is a stepping stone towards a brighter future for Johannesburg,” he said.
Bea Swanepoel, CEO of JMJ, has announced a year-long programme to celebrate the city’s cultural heritage through engaging events.
“Sustainable practices will be prioritised to not only welcome international guests but reflect the city’s commitment to environmental stewardship,” she said.
As part of this exciting year, expect government conferences at venues such as the Birchwood Conference Centre in Boksburg and the aforementioned Gallagher Estate in Midrand. For many years, Birchwood has hosted labour union conferences.
Pop culture event Comic Con Africa will be at the Joburg Expo Centre in September and at the CTICC in May.
Speaking of the coast, Cape Town, Durban and Gqeberha are expected to host a mix of business and industry conferences. In April, the CTICC will host WTM Africa, Africa’s only B2B exhibition for both inbound and outbound travel and tourism markets. The South African International Tattoo Convention will be held in March at Cape Town’s DHL Stadium.
Durban is also set for a rise in business activity and should see demand for conferencing.
Last year, in a vote of confidence, Southern Sun Limited secured a 50-year lease for prime properties on the Durban beachfront, which houses its 734-room Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani hotel. The deal with the landowners, eThekwini metro, will see around R1 billion invested in the hotel and other properties in the area.
Expect to see events at the Olive Convention Centre near Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani and the mega Durban International Convention Centre (DICC). The DICC is 30 minutes from King Shaka airport and adjacent to the Durban Hilton Hotel, which offers convenient accommodation. It has one of Africa’s largest multipurpose event spaces.
Here’s hoping that this year brings thousands of us back to conference centre chairs, especially those with added hotel and leisure facilities.
Ask Ash is a column that examines South Africa’s property, architecture and living spaces.
Continue the conversation with her on email [email protected]) and X (@askashbroker).