PODCAST | Competing in Cape Town’s competitive corporate conference market

The growth in SA’s hotel and conferencing is the focus of this edition of Business Day Spotlight. 

Host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Gary Koetser, CEO of Century City Conference Centre and Hotels (CCCCH).

CCCCH is a business and lifestyle precinct in Cape Town, made up of a conference centre, two hotels — Bridgewater and Urban Square — and two restaurants. It competes with The Cape Town International Conference Centre and other conferencing facilities in the city. 

According to Koetser, the growth of CCCCH has been helped by return in person conferencing since the Covid-19 pandemic ended. In addition, Century City as an area has seen adoption from large corporates such as Liberty, MTN and Absa that have moved their offices to the precinct.

Join the discussion: 

All has helped with growing and maintain demand for its conference unit, which drive traffic to the hotel and restaurant facilities. The business was founded in 2016, under Koetser’s leadership, alongside group commercial manager Kim Weber.

In September 2023, the business invested R15m into refurbishments to its business lounge and public spaces, and the addition of a new venue, The Verve. This was in response to the growing demand for world-class conferencing facilities in SA, particularly in Cape Town.

The discussion highlights the growth of conferencing Cape Town’s competitive market; CCCCH’s business model; investment into the company’s facilities; and an outlook for the sector. 

Koetser also refers to what he calls “confercations”, a modern take of bleisure (business and leisure). “Confercations are a blend of conferences and vacations, where delegates extend their stay, either before or after a conference, to experience a destination from a leisure point of view.” 

Business Day Spotlight is a MultimediaLIVE Production.

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