Our Articles
These are the monthly articles written exclusively for the Waterfall Community Website. For historical articles choose from the History button above.
George Clooney
- the man has a conscience. By Matthew Campaigne-Scott If we asked you to identify a celebrity who started out selling ladies shoes, whose face was paralysed with Bell’s palsy in high school, dropped out of two Universities, whose mother was a beauty queen and whose maternal great-great-great-great-grandmother, was the half-sister of Nancy Lincoln, mother of President Abraham Lincoln you may be a tad flummoxed.
READ ON [..] Urbanisation: slower than expected, but no room for complacency. by Matthew Campaigne-Scott
Over a hundred Years ago, it’s estimated that 95% of people living south of the Sahara were engaged in cattle nomadism, hunting & gathering, farming and fishing, leaving 5% of Africa’s population in urban settlements. Prior to the growth of independence movements in the 1950s, 15% had become urbanised. According to UN figures of 2002 that increased to 37.2 with a projection of approximately 3.5% per annum the figure will look more like 45.3% by this year. READ ON[...}
Offshore Property Investment - not for the faint-hearted by Matthew Campaigne-Scott
Timing is everything, and if it isn’t then learning from history is. Continuing to make the same offshore property investment bungles could be the result of a combination of emotional frustration, Afro-pessimism and a Moby Dick like obsession with the Rand. READ ON[..]
Read about Miss Cara the cat a very beloved pet to a family of Waterfallers among a an array of your favourite cat quotes by famous cat lovers. Read On [..]
The Landlord Strikes Back
by Matthew Campaigne-Scott READ ON Read OnIf anyone thought bricks & mortar retailers were going to lie down in the face of an online invasion they are very much mistaken. Likewise any retail landlord who hasn’t heeded the ‘adapt-or-die’ writing on the wall, is in for a shock. South Africa’s traditionally big names have learnt to have an online presence to supplement their physical shop experience. Woolworths and Pick n’ Pay have online shops. While Look n’ Listen, for example, has become so integrated online it’s basically a hybrid retailer... READ ON Someone has to Wear the Green Tights
by Matthew Campaigne-Scott Read On Have you ever witnessed one of those moments at a glittering event, where the company envoy ostentatiously hands over the enormous polystyrene dummy cheque to the suitably grateful charity representative. The cameras flash, the recipient’s knees bend a little, the company boss swells and flashes a self-satisfied smile. People clap and everyone swoons in awe at the selfless generosity of business. Onlookers declare: “They do have a heart.” And “It’s not just about the money.” Let’s not pretend that business doesn’t need positive affirmation from the community. Face it; we all like a good pat on the back. |
Flying Into the Sunrise - Airport retail in a 'recessionary' market
In the old Westerns, people galloped off into the west as the sun set to get away from all their troubles. Well if current stats are correct, people may want to fly off into the east into the rising sun instead. Since shopping and traveling are human ways of escaping cold hard reality, it may explain why emerging market countries’ airports are doing a roaring retail trade in the aftermath of the world financial crisis. More [..]
After the Second World War, many soldiers returned home to Europe, North America and the colonies establishing families, the children of which are embarking on their retirement years round about now. Unfortunately this collective has been described as largely asset rich and cash poor.
Given that most people retire later than expected, still working long after retirement age, and having not planned adequately for their sunset years, choosing where to live is arguably the next biggest decision in the retirement process...READ ON If something strikes me about Waterfall, it’s the characters. Every community has its fair share of oddballs but characters are more than that, they have substance and value. Characters give a community colour and flavour. I’m referring to individuals usually beyond the years of youth who have developed a certain style or manner expressed more for themselves than out of mere vanity... READ ON
Waterfall Today
by Matthew Campaigne-Scott Waterfall has long been associated with the outer reaches of greater Durban, at one stage enjoying the autonomy of its own local council that became defunct with the advent of Durban’s eThekwini municipality. Growth of the population and consequent development in the general upper highway area are unprecedented seeing big sisters Hillcrest and Kloof booming in property prices and in the case of Hillcrest, infrastructure... READ ON
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Onshoring in the USA with lessons for SA
by Matthew Campaigne-Scott Onshoring is seeing a resurgence in manufacturing in the United States. The knock on effect for industrial and commercial real estate is debatable. What lessons, if any, are there for the South African market?
Firms like Ford, Carlisle Tire and Wheel Company, Otis Elevators, General Electric and Whirlpool have relocated some jobs back to the U.S. or opted to upgrade existing U.S. plants rather than resort to off-shore operations. This was in the wake of the World Financial Crisis. READ ON [..] A Man and His Butcher are Not Easily Parted
by Matthew Campaigne-Scott There’s something very masculine about meat, isn’t there? The immediate image that comes to mind is the braai. Generally and mostly it’s men standing around advising other men about how often to turn the meat, what adjustments the fire needs for different meat and so on. That’s why male vegetarians aren’t really complete men- kind of like missing a testicle...READ ON
Durban's Watefall is Finally on the map by Matthew Campaigne-Scott
The ‘Outer West’ area of Durban, also known as the Upper Highway, is a swiftly developing residential node, but with some distinct commercial nooks and crannies worth watching.
Durban’s Outer West retail landscape is thrusting into another phase of development with the development of The Watercrest Mall in Waterfall. A number of years ago... _READ ON Cell C, South Africa’s third Cellular operator is now a tenant in 960 towers that they used to own! Huh? It true, it’s called a sale-leaseback and that’s an investment that may interest you.....So what exactly is a sale-leaseback when it’s at home in front of the fire? A sale leaseback option allows a company to sell its assets and lease them back simultaneously. This can be beneficial for businesses that are in need of an inflow of capital...
This practice isn’t new at all. In France it’s been popular for over thirty years. In other Western economies it’s widespread and its trends generally flow from the US... In fact, many of the biggest names in business -- including Microsoft, and Wal-Mart have used leaseback over the years. READ ON |
For more articles written by Matthew Campaigne-Scott visit http://hearonearth.wordpress.com