Cape West Coast shining at PERA Awards

West Coast Way has won an award in the Premier’s Entrepreneurship Recognition Awards (PERA Awards) – the Western Cape’s most prestigious entrepreneurship competition which honours excellence in entrepreneurship.

Launched in 2013, PERA is an initiative of the Department of Economic Development and Tourism. Alan Winde, Minister of Economic Opportunities, says that since inception the awards have moved from strength to strength and this years’ event had 333 entries in 11 categories, with a panel of ten judges scoring the finalists on a set of criteria including growth, jobs, innovation, industry relevance, sustainability, creativity and socio-economic impact.

Scooping third place in the Best Emerging Tourism Business category of the PERA awards, West Coast Way is a privately owned business which was founded by Carmen Lerm in October 2014 and is an initiative which actively markets and showcases the Cape West Coast Biodiversity Corridor and the greater West Coast region, thereby increasing visitor numbers and improving economic growth for locals.

PERA finalists, including West Coast Businesses:
Carmen Lerm, founder of West Coast Way on the left and the founders Frits van Ryneveld and Hentie van der Merwe from Darling Sweet on the right.

“West Coast Way has developed a unique collection of themed routes that can be enjoyed by locals and visitors when they do an adventure-filled self-drive trip – the ultimate West Coast Way road tripping guide. Tour operators can use these routes as part of their itinerary and easily find what they need to put bespoke and new packages together,” explains Lerm.

Carmen Lerm, founder of West Coast Way and Premier Helen Zille

The “basket” of routes on offer that have been developed by West Coast Way include the West Coast Way Scenic Route, the West Coast Way Berg Route, the West Coast Way Foodie Route, the West Coast Way Cultural Route, and the latest addition, which is the West Coast Way Wild Route that is to be launched in December 2016 to the local tourism industry, and to the international tourism industry in April 2017 at the prestigious World Travel Market Africa Show. All of the routes are designed to showcase the many attractions and activities that are already on offer on the Cape West Coast and inland areas – but may be unknown to many.

Premier Helen Zille said: “Entrepreneurs are the engine room of our economy, they employ 500 000 people in this province. That is why since 2009, we have supported over 35 000 small businesses to grow. PERA forms part of our suite of services for entrepreneurs and celebrates the important role they play in our economy. I thank all entrants for their role in growing the economy and creating jobs.”

For more information on West Coast Way, the routes on offer, and the list of 101 Things to Do on the West Coast visit www.westcoastway.co.za or call West Coast Way on 0861 321 777. Connect with West Coast Way on Facebook and Twitter at WestCoastWaySA.

For more information go to Darling Dorpskoerant: http://dorpskoerant.co.za/2016-pera-awards/