Connect’d Cape Town, a new initiative which aims to attract and facilitate investment and business opportunities to Cape Town, has launched its website, www.connectdcapetown.com 

The programme is oriented towards international and national visitors to Cape Town, and uses events (primarily conventions and sports events) to drive applications from interested business people or businesses, and to build communities of interlinked organisations.

“Members can find carefully selected events in the Cape that will help drive their businesses the most,” says Guy Lundy, CEO of Accelerate Cape Town, the organisation that drives Connect’d Cape Town.

“Connect’d Cape Town is more than just a listing of businesses,” he adds. “For a long time, there has been a feeling among business leaders in the Western Cape that the region is not capitalising, commercially on the large number of visitors to the area. There is also strong evidence, elsewhere in the world, that a concerted effort to showcase the business possibilities of a region to visitors, whatever their reason for visiting, can be extremely effective. Connect’d Cape Town has been established to do just that. “

Local and international businesses can apply to be listed on the website, so that interested parties can find them easily In so doing, they join 39 of the largest corporate businesses in the Western Cape who are partners with Accelerate Cape Town, along with many of the most significant stakeholders in the Cape business world.

Newly listed businesses will be able to search the website for suitable commercial organisations with which they wish to connect. Connect’d Cape Town will then help make these connections possible – either directly through the website, or by facilitating meetings in person at the associated event(s).

These face-to-face meetings form the second part of Connect’d Cape Town. There will be a dedicated space at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) at which interested parties can use the Connect’d Cape Town website, and meet potential business investors. Connect’d Cape Town will also have a ‘satellite’ physical stand at some of the other venues in the Cape region, should selected conferences be held there.

Interested parties are urged to register their business on the website at no cost.