By Alec Hogg
It’s a really big, complex world out there.
I got a reminder this weekend when accompanying my beloved to the world’s biggest art and design show, Maison & Objet in Paris. Over five days of hectic activity, hundreds of exhibitors from every corner of the world displayed wares for thousands of potential buyers. Think a dozen Rand Easter Shows all at once.
Out of my comfort zone, solace came by studying a fat catalogue where South African connections eventually emerged. Three of them. One of the exhibitors was there with support from the DTI. But the other two, collections of small businesses representing mostly rural SA crafters, attended through initiatives of altruistic Western countries – in this case Netherlands and Denmark.
A couple of things hit me. While South Africa invests heavily in courting the BRICs, none of these emerging giants consider reciprocating unless it serves their self-interest. But many from “the West” keep offering support simply because they believe it’s the right thing to do. Lest SA forgets and starts taking these quiet friends for granted.
