This weekend Cape Town was privileged to have the presence of one of the most powerful vessels in the world anchor off our shores. The USS Theodore Roosevelt arrive on Friday evening and simply perched itself in the middle of Table Bay. The impact of this was felt throughout the city. Firstly every retailer in the Waterfront was scrambling to hopefully get their slice of the dollar pie as the sailors cam ashore to have some fun and secondly the boating world were quickly putting together special tours and outings to see the vessel up close. The effect I noticed was that the rules for shipping in the bay were changed and restrictions immediately put on all the locals for both sea and air. The big boys were in town and I had to change the way I normally do things. We were “ushered politely” away from within the 1-mile radius of the Aircraft Carrier by our own SA Navy patrol boat.
How similar is this to business. A small independent business can work well for years, serving and building relationships with the community and then the Big Boys arrive and open a super store in the area and the rules change over night. This puts the small business owner under a lot of pressure with cash flow and loyalty that often leads to closure and trade restrictions for further business.
Lucky for us in Cape Town, the US Navy up anchor and head elsewhere on Tuesday, so we get our ocean back. Unlucky for others who watch in horror as yet another Woolies Food or Pick n Pay begins to build their store on our doorstep.
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