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Shirley Bhima, Product Owner
 


Col-John Guesthouse

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IT’S called the Great North Road, the road that takes the traveller from the cities of Pretoria and Johannesburg into the interior, the heart of Africa.

From Polokwane the Great North Road winds its way through the Soutpansberg and seemingly endless bush, all the way to the Limpopo River.

A thoroughly modern city with every amenity, for decades Zimbabweans have come to Polokwane for shopping. Many travellers use the laid-back friendly city as a springboard from which to explore the rich culture of Limpopo province and its many game reserves. From Polokwane, other roads branch off to the mythical mountainlands of Magoebaskloof and the Venda people.

Far to the north, the Great North Road will eventually lead you to Malawi, the country that styles itself as the warm heart of Africa.

This is where Shirley Bhima was born and grew up, the daughter of a Malawian father and a South African mother. An accountant by training, Shirley worked as the personal assistant to the managing director of a large tea plantation in Malawi before moving to South Africa in 2004.
 
After settling in Johannesburg, Shirley was recruited by a relative who had just bought a guesthouse in Polokwane. “He originally asked me to help with the finances because that was my background but, I guess, he liked my work and I found that I really loved the guesthouse business and so I stayed,” says Shirley.

Now the general manager of the Col-John Guesthouse, 38-year-old Shirley has found her niche – and a home in a city that, she says, reminds her every day of Malawi. “It’s really beautiful here and the people of Polokwane are so friendly, just like Malawians,” she says.

Friendly service is the hallmark of Col-John. The guesthouse on Burger Street has been in existence for more than a decade (it takes its name from those of the original owners’ children, Colette and Johan) and there are no fewer than 36 staff on hand to pamper guests.

The location is ideal: just next door to the stadium that will host matches of the 2010 Fifa football World Cup and a few minutes’ stroll from either the Savannah Mall or downtown Polokwane. It’s also close to the N1 and the roads that make Polokwane such an important crossroads.

Col-John has 49 rooms, all en-suite with showers or baths. (Rates start from R590 bed and breakfast for a single room.) There are three family rooms and six large deluxe rooms. There is even a vast, sumptuous presidential suite with three en-suite bedrooms, two lounges, a private dining room that can seat eight and its own kitchen.

All rooms are non-smoking but have intimate outside verandas which flow out into Col-John’s spacious and beautifully manicured gardens. Near the pool, most guests make a bee line for the Barn Owl ladies’ bar for a sundowner before tucking into the buffet dinners which have won a following not just with travellers but also among Polokwane locals.

Conference facilities can accommodate between eighteen and 100 delegates and Col-John staff take care of all arrangements including lunches, snacks and teas, flip charts and audiovisual equipment down to pencils and note pads. Smaller weddings and cocktail parties are also hosted.

Full English breakfasts plus plenty of fresh fruit and cereals are served in the mornings, and lunches are arranged on request. “We receive a lot of compliments about our food,” says Shirley. “We’re serious when we say that we want Col-John to be a home away from home and that is why our menu has a homemade feel about it. It’s top class food but it’s what you would expect to eat at home – assuming, of course that Mum is a really good cook.”

Most guests come to Polokwane on business but, true to its claim to be a home from home, Col-John does not have the feel of a business hotel. “Our staff are always smiling and very courteous,” says Shirley. “The atmosphere is relaxed and informal and guests really make themselves at home.” Staff, however, are always ready and willing to assist with business arrangements such as sending faxes, making photocopies or to book hire cars.

What motivates Shirley, she says, is a good challenge. “I like to have lots of challenges and to overcome them. In the hospitality business every day brings its own, new challenges. Overcoming these challenges and seeing that, at the end of the day, guests have had a really good experience, these are the things that motivate me.”
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