Cheryl Hunter (shelflife at marklives.com)’s weekly pick of all things new — product, packaging, design, insight, food, décor and more!
- Fox Junction launches this week
- Sushi revolution at Ocean Basket
- KLM tailoring business in Africa
The Shed converted
The iconic urban shed MarketShed@1Fox has undergone a substantial conversion into a brand new event space that launches on 1 May 2016t as Fox Junction Event Venue, the forerunner of several other planned developments in the precinct.
1Fox is set in historic warehouses that date back to the City of Joburg’s gold-mining roots and are rumoured to be the original site of one of the first gold rush bars.
Sue Aerts and Jan Roode (part-owner of The Good Luck Bar) are the new owners of the venue and they already have a long list of events and activities planned, beginning with the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Exhibition, which will be on display at the venue for the entire month of May. The new event venue will cater to large and small events, and has been equipped with gantries and rigging points for large-event technical staging.
According to Aerts, bookings are ‘flying’ in: “With a shortage of large-event venues in Johannesburg, this unique, iconic space aims to fill a much-needed gap in the South African event industry. However, the venue can be subdivided into smaller venues, making it ideal for any size function.”
The venue will host a popup market twice a month on the second and last weekends of each month, beginning 6 May with a night market and 7 May with a day market. The market is called Fox Junction Market and its focus is to showcase up-and-coming designers, entrepreneurs, foodie gurus, pop-up restaurants, food trucks and artists. Live music and a bar serving exotic cocktails and craft beer will be features of the market.
There will also be a more permanent food market in one of the adjacent sheds, which is scheduled to open on 1 June, so patrons may pop in any time and enjoy a relaxed informal food market. The Mad Giant Craft Brewery will be opening on 1 June. There are a number of additional formal restaurants and beverage services planned, including Happy Me, Shadow Boxer and a fine-dining restaurant opening at Mad Giant in June.
Says Aerts, “1Fox is going to become the destination of choice for entertainment and food.”
www.foxjunction.co.za • Facebook
Mediterrasian sushi launches
April has seen seen the launch of the Ocean Basket Sushi Revolution, introducing a completely new sushi concept fashioned by world sushi champion, Pepi Anevski, into stores across SA.
Says Ocean Basket marketing lead, Jean Sloane, “The question Ocean Basket asked itself was how we could innovate our sushi offering and create something exciting, original and distinctly Ocean Basket? Then we asked why we only offer Japanese-style sushi when we are a seafood restaurant with a strong Mediterranean heritage?”
The answers came when the team met Anevski in Cyprus and he interrogated their understanding of sushi: “Sushi is Japanese by origin. Broken down to its basic ingredients, it is seaweed, rice, wasabi and soy sauce and ginger. But that’s where the sushi rules end. “I thought of how many fusion restaurants I had been working for that had learned to combine sushi with local flavours. We decided to stop imitating other Japanese restaurants; to respect the sushi basics and then insert Mediterranean flavors.”
The Result: ‘Mediterrasian sushi’, a fusion Japanese sushi with a Mediterranean flavour twist.
Sloane says, “As seafood-procuring experts, we are in a position to offer a superior product at an affordable price and now we can also claim a fresh new menu with a unique blend of flavours that remain true to our Mediteranean cuisine.”
Note: Ocean Basket is a client of Cheryl Hunter.
sushirevolution.co.za • Facebook • Twitter
African business gets its own show
Tailored Business, a new show aimed at highlighting African business leaders and entrepreneurs, has secured a partnership with airline KLM’s “Club Africa” and will be co-hosting business networking events across Africa, with a focus on Lagos, Nairobi, Kigali, Accra, Johannesburg and Abidjan.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5W5uiu8btkY
The show, hosted by Rwandan Tania Habimana, who is touted as the person responsible for bringing luxury menswear brand Suitsupply to Africa, aired its first episode in April.
The show highlights Habimana’s skills as a young female tailor, business woman and aspiring entrepreneur: “Speaking to all these entrepreneurs from different industries, not only guides me in how to grow my own business, but also illustrates to us all the diverse opportunities that exist in Africa.”
Watch the first episode above.
www.tailoredbusinesstv.com • Facebook
Shelf Life is MarkLives.com’s weekly column covering all things new. Notify us of yours at shelflife at marklives dot com. Want to sponsor Shelf Life? Contact us here.
Cheryl Hunter (@cherylhunter) has written for the South African media, marketing and advertising industries for more than 15 years. A former editor of M&M in Independent Newspapers and contributor to Bizcommunity, AdFocus, AdReview and the Ad Annual, she has also produced for various television networks and currently consults on communication strategy and media liaison.
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