By Barbara Hollands

He founded a famous international fashion label and created luxury guesthouses all over the world, including Cape Town. Now eccentric British-born rag trade mogul Brian Redding has turned his sights on the Eastern Cape.

Having been introduced to the province by his Xhosa girlfriend, Redding, 72, fell in love with East London or Emonti as he insists on calling it, and has already sunk R15-million into a lifestyle venture he vows will take the hospitality industry by storm.

Open-air movie theatres, beach-side schools for the underprivileged and star- studded jazz concerts are in the pipeline, and he is hell-bent on attracting tourists to the city.

“I fell in love with Emonti and the beauty of the Wild Coast. Europeans want beautiful spots but Cape Town is their number one destination, so we must bring people here to show them the beauty.

“But we must call it Emonti. Why would people want to come to a place named after a smelly part of London that features in soapies?” he said.

Redding, who claims to be “best friends” with Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones, bought the Dolphin View Lodge, an East London business comprising restaurants and upmarket accommodation overlooking the Indian Ocean, in December and is already up to the elbows in overhauling it completely.

The existing Cape to Cairo restaurant will become Zen Café, while next door will be Mama Africa, a Moroccan restaurant that will feature belly- dancing. Alongside that will be a jazz club called New Orleans. Other spaces will include a seafood bistro, pizzeria and oyster bar. A spa infused with water features and stocked with Balinese and Thai masseuses will form part of the dream Redding has conjured up for the venue, which boasts 180-degree ocean views.

Three boutiques carrying luxury brands, a rim- flow pool and giant aquariums will complete the elaborate picture Redding is painting on the East London beachfront.

“My plan is to make this venue what it deserves to be a place to eat and have fun and dance like we did in the Sixties.”

He also plans to host Japanese, Belgian and French teams at the soccer World Cup next year.

“By then I hope to have up to 60 rooms decorated in minimalist, contemporary style,” he said, adding that he hoped to buy up surrounding properties to expand his business overlooking East London‘s Esplanade.

Source: Weekend Post