Genevieve Nel's Journey in Diplomatic Catering
What are some of your most memorable catering experiences?
Many of my most memorable experiences stem from years back when my mom and aunts started Norma and Vilma Caterers. I was just a young girl, and we had the honour to cater for and subsequently meet Pope John Paul II when he visited South Africa. All our families had the honour to meet him, and it was the most incredible day.
What is your philosophy on food and catering?
You need to love what you do to provide food that tastes and looks good. We try to always create an environment at work with happy and fulfilled team members. A happy chef creates beautiful food.
What makes your catering business unique?
We take great pride in basing our business on creating relationships with clients. This is the cornerstone of our business and has always been, even when the business started 30 years ago.
How do you stay up-to-date with the latest trends in catering?
Social media is a huge influence in my business. I am always getting new ideas online, but we also work with a wonderful group of event planners and coordinators who push us out of our comfort zone, often creating new and wonderful food experiences.
What is your culinary guilty pleasure?
I am simple when it comes to food. I love a night out at a nice restaurant—not a fancy expensive one, but the local family restaurant in the neighbourhood with my husband and children. That's just perfect for me.
You are becoming known as an 'Ambassador of Local Flavours' in diplomatic circles. What is the major thing you want to teach diplomats about South African food?
I wouldn't say we are gurus in local flavours, but we love to bring South African flavours into international dishes. We are blessed enough to be entrusted with some wonderful National Days where we try new international cuisines, which become popular with our other clients afterwards. South Africans have wide exposure to international food—we grew up with families that ate anything and everything, so we are very lucky to have been exposed to such a variety of flavours.
Who influenced you the most?
There is no doubt that my mother, Norma, has been my biggest influencer in the catering business. She started and ran Norma and Vilma Caterers successfully for 25 years until COVID. Thereafter, she and I started Norma and Co on our own in 2021, and although she has taken a step back from the business, she still works and runs the business in the background. She still has a big influence on the flavours and recipes we create and produce.
Your work involves a great deal of creativity. Where do you find your inspiration?
A lot of our setups and creations involve trial and error. We have wonderful suppliers such as florists and equipment décor companies that assist with beautiful equipment and flowers, but staying on top of trends in the catering business worldwide also helps with inspiration. There are many caterers creating amazing things daily. Thanks to social media, we can draw inspiration globally now.
When did your business begin?
Norma and Co started in 2021 during COVID, built on the backbone of Norma and Vilma Caterers. COVID hit our industry hard, and instead of closing our doors permanently, we decided to restructure, move our premises, downsize substantially, and start again. This was a huge leap of faith, but we are so grateful that we were able to remain relevant to some of our clients and have gained so many more along the way.
Which was the first embassy you catered for?
I was still a young girl, but I remember my mom and aunts catering for the Embassy of Peru's National Day even before the business had business premises—when the business was still being run from our kitchen in our family home.
How many embassies do you now cater for?
In diplomatic circles, there is always changeover of staff regularly, so we are always grateful for our South African contacts that carry us through the different missions. We work with a wonderful group of ambassadors, high commissioners, consul generals, and many others currently. I would estimate we probably work with approximately 25 embassies at the moment.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mail & Guardian
5 hours ago
- Mail & Guardian
Leadership in Africa: A call to courage, ingenuity and human-centred innovation
In today's world, leadership is no longer about command and control. It's about clarity in chaos, courage in contradiction, and compassion in complexity. As an African woman and engineer in financial services, I've seen firsthand how the demands on leaders have shifted, from technical expertise to human, centred wisdom. The modern leader must be more than a strategist. She must be a storyteller, a coach, and a meaning-maker. Financial performance still matters, but it now shares the stage with disruption, generative AI, human potential, and trust. These are the new currencies of leadership. As Leena Nair, CEO of Chanel reminds us, 'Do the tough things, do it decisively, but do it with compassion. Do it keeping the human being at the end of it in mind.' In Africa, this sentiment resonates deeply. Our continent is a paradox of promise and pressure, where economic inclusion and digital innovation are colliding in real time. Leadership here must go beyond boardrooms. Leadership must show up in communities, in classrooms, and in the informal economy. It must safeguard dignity while driving transformation. We are being called to lead not just with intelligence, but with ingenuity. Not just with frameworks, but with empathy. And not just with authority, but with authenticity. Gary Hamel and Michele Zanini, authors of Humanocracy , put it plainly, 'The most resilient organisations are those where every individual feels empowered to contribute, innovate, and lead, not just those at the top.' This is especially true in Africa, where the transition from education to employment, from informal to insured, and from excluded to empowered is not theoretical—it's urgent. Our leadership must be agile enough to respond to disruption and grounded enough to build trust. AI is now both a tool and a test. It's forcing us to ask: what is the true value of human leadership? And the answer is clear—empathy, judgement, vulnerability, and compassion are more critical than ever. Research confirms that soft skills often outweigh technical know-how in the age of AI. Employees want leaders who can balance technology with humanity, and who can translate these skills into workplaces that respect and uplift. This has consequences for how leadership needs to evolve over the next five years. Leadership has long been mistaken for charisma or seniority, but true leadership is grown and shaped through failure, feedback, and personal reflection. Companies cannot afford to over-index on tenure, compliance, and familiarity, especially in sectors where the solutions sold are promises instead of products. Trust, in financial services, is a currency and long-term growth depends on how human capital is nurtured and engaged, not just on quarterly gains. Old Mutual has weathered its fair share of storms over its 180 years in the financial industry and is not immune to the disruptions across genAI, next-generation technology and geopolitical uncertainty. However, the company is leaning into it because, at its core, it is a company that deals in complexity: lives, legacies, and the future. These concepts are deeply personal and expect the business to marry machine intelligence with human empathy, that the best parts of generative AI are connected to qualities that no algorithm can replace. This approach removes the sense that genAI is wedged in because it is so ubiquitous but rather used as a tool that helps model risk, detect fraud, process claims and support customers and advisors. It is accelerating what companies can do, but it is also pushing leaders to rethink why these companies do it. Is it automation for its own sake? Or is it augmentation that creates space for people to use their insights and intentions to deliver strategic value? Ingenuity is not about innovation, but intention and the difficult decisions that define leadership in times of flux. Leaders need to know when to pause, when to persist and have the courage to create a culture where diverse thinking is encouraged and nurtured. The future will be led by companies that can reframe the value equation and that recognise how performance cannot come at the cost of people, and technology cannot replace trust.
The Herald
6 hours ago
- The Herald
Ticad 9 ushers in new era of partnership
Twenty-five years ago, in 2000, I visited Senegal for the first time, marking my initial steps into Africa. I was overwhelmed by the dynamism of young students and the continent's vast potential, which convinced me that Africa has a bright future. Now that conviction is becoming a reality. Indeed, 2025 is essentially the year of Africa, highlighted by the dynamic synergy between two major international forums focusing on Africa: Japan hosting the ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (Ticad 9) in Yokohama from August 20-22, and SA taking the lead in the G20 presidency. Initially incepted in 1993, Ticad remains a pioneering conference focused on African development for the past three decades, distinguished by its unique emphasis on 'African ownership' and 'international partnership'. Furthermore, Ticad's inclusiveness and openness to engage a wide range of stakeholders — such as international organisations, third countries, businesses, academia and NGOs — highlight its unique strengths. Embracing this philosophy, Japan will remain a steadfast partner for Africa. Ticad 9 will be held under the theme 'Co-create innovative solutions with Africa', where Japan aims to explore innovative solutions to the challenges facing Africa by leveraging its cutting-edge technologies and expertise. It is mutually beneficial to combine home-grown solutions developed in Africa with these solutions presented by Japan. Africa possesses abundant resources, a vibrant, youthful population, and remarkable potential for innovation. At the same time it faces significant challenges: poverty, conflict, unemployment, infectious diseases and climate change. Ticad 9 will address these head-on by focusing on three key cross-cutting approaches: Driving sustainable economic growth through private sector leadership. Japan will accelerate Africa's economic transformation by fostering private sector investment. This includes improving the investment environment and leveraging cutting-edge technologies in such areas as artificial intelligence (AI), digitalisation, green transformation and the utilisation of satellite data. These will create new economic opportunities and enhance impacts. Japan's expertise and resources will be harnessed to support the growth of African businesses and the development of robust industrial ecosystems. Japan will accelerate Africa's economic transformation by fostering private sector investment. This includes improving the investment environment and leveraging cutting-edge technologies in such areas as artificial intelligence (AI), digitalisation, green transformation and the utilisation of satellite data. These will create new economic opportunities and enhance impacts. Japan's expertise and resources will be harnessed to support the growth of African businesses and the development of robust industrial ecosystems. Empowering youth and women. Africa's future rests on the shoulders of its young people and women. Japan is committed to empowering youth and women through comprehensive human resource development programmes, targeting skills development in high-growth sectors. By nurturing their potential we can drive inclusive growth and create a more sustainable society. Africa's future rests on the shoulders of its young people and women. Japan is committed to empowering youth and women through comprehensive human resource development programmes, targeting skills development in high-growth sectors. By nurturing their potential we can drive inclusive growth and create a more sustainable society. Strengthening regional integration and connectivity. Regional integration is crucial for Africa's prosperity. Japan will strongly support the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) through facilitating cross-border trade and investment, and building value chains. In line with the initiative of Free and Open Indo-Pacific announced by Japan at Ticad 6 in Nairobi, Japan will continue to enhance connectivity, resilient institutions and human resource development in Africa. To achieve sustainable development and inclusive societies through these approaches, promoting peace and stability is crucial. Japan continues to partner with African countries, vigorously supporting Africa's own initiatives to strengthen peace and stability in the continent. Ticad 9 is more than a conference; it's a vibrant and living platform for forging deeper partnerships, generating innovative solutions, and building a shared vision for a prosperous and sustainable future for Africa and the world. The significance of the Japan-Africa partnership reaches far beyond its impact on Africa alone. Japan would like to work with Africa to strengthen inclusive and responsible global governance that ensures peace and prosperity of the international community. • Ishiba is prime minister of Japan.
Mail & Guardian
12 hours ago
- Mail & Guardian
Robust SA agricultural exports to US in second quarter of 2025
South Africa needs to maintain and secure other markets, in addition to negotiating lower tariffs with the US. Photo: Supplied I was pleasantly surprised to see that agricultural exports to the US were quite strong in the second quarter of 2025 exports data for South Africa. But we must not be complacent in our discussions with the US and start to believe the risk for the year has been averted. The goal of ensuring better access to the US market remains critical, especially for agriculture (and the vehicle industry). The data shows that South Africa's agricultural exports to the US in the second quarter of 2025 amounted to $161 million, up 26% from the same period in 2024. This is not a matter of base effects, but a better performance. And remember, this comes after another exciting quarter at the start of the year, when South Africa's agricultural exports to the US in the first quarter of 2025 were at $118 million, up 19% year-on-year. In the second quarter, the impressive jump in agricultural exports to the US could be because some exporters pushed large volumes to take advantage of the 90-day pause of Donald Trump's 'liberation tariffs'. But another factor that partly explains this improvement so far this year is that South Africa generally has an ample fruit harvest and a decent wine harvest of excellent quality. The products that continue to dominate South Africa's agricultural exports to the US are citrus, fruit juices, wine, nuts, apricots, apples, pears and grapes. We were also lucky this year because the ports have been operating quite efficiently, enabling the exporters to take advantage of the tariff pause window. The $161 million of South Africa's agricultural exports to the US account for 4% of the overall agricultural exports to the world market, which was at $3.71 billion (up 10% year-on-year). The strong exports to the US also continue to illustrate the importance of that market to the various industries of South Africa's agriculture. Therefore, securing better tariff levels will be beneficial to the likes of citrus, nuts, ostrich products, table grapes and wine industries, among others. Beyond the US agricultural trade matters, we must focus on export diversification, and the starting point must be lower tariffs and simplified phytosanitary regulations in the Brics countries, specifically China, India, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. We generally need greater access to the Middle East and Asian markets. As all the export expansion efforts continue, the one aspect that we should not neglect is maintaining warm relations with the existing export markets in the European Union, broader Africa, the Middle-East, Asia and the Americas. South Africa's agricultural sector is export-oriented, and securing better access to various export markets, while ensuring the maintenance of the existing markets, should remain top of mind for the policy makers and the industry stakeholders. When we think of the medium to long-term growth of South Africa's agricultural sector, we typically flag the possibilities of expansion, area planting and livestock farming, among other activities. Any success in such expansion will require an export focus, as the domestic market lacks sufficient capacity to absorb our products at a profitable level for farmers. So far, what remains uplifting, at least for now, is that the agricultural exports to the US market remain robust. The coming quarters' performance will depend on whether South Africa achieves better security and tariff levels than the current 30%, which is far above our competitors, such as Chile and Peru. Wandile Sihlobo is the chief economist of the Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa (Agbiz).
