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At the end of November, Surf Expo Africa brings the city’s ocean culture indoors for three days at CTICC 2. Africa’s first all-ocean sport and beach-lifestyle trade show is not just about shiny new boards and beachwear. Organisers say it is a launch pad for the Western Cape’s recreational blue economy.
“Cape Town’s coastline is our competitive advantage,” says Jason Cumming, co-founder of Surf Expo Africa. “This expo is where the boardroom meets the break. It is a place for founders, buyers, and communities to connect, do business, and open doors for people who want their careers to start where the waves end.”
Cape Town’s Ocean Economy on the Rise
Cape Town’s visitor economy is booming. In 2024, the city welcomed roughly 2.4 million overnight tourists, whose direct spend injected around R24.5 billion into local businesses, supporting approximately 106,000 jobs across accommodation, food, transport, and attractions. That is a strong tailwind for any event turning ocean passion into paycheques.
The city’s ocean-sports economy is thriving. A BlueCape baseline study valued it at R1.38 billion in 2018/19, while the City’s Economic Growth directorate estimates about R2 billion in current value, with 20% annual growth. Surf schools, shapers, paddle and foil innovators, safety training, events, and media form a diverse ecosystem that flourishes when people meet, test, and trade.
Cape Town’s beaches also shine. For the 2024/25 season, eight beaches earned Blue Flag status, from Clifton 4th and Camps Bay to Muizenberg and Fish Hoek, a mark of both visitor appeal and high management standards.
“We are starting local, giving Cape Town and Western Cape businesses a powerful shop window, and we will scale to international audiences next,” says Cumming. “The opportunity is here on our doorstep: more lessons, rentals, tours, events, makers, and young people trained as lifeguards, surf coaches, skippers, and technicians.”
Globally, coastal and marine tourism accounts for at least half of all tourism, making it a major lever for coastal jobs when managed well. Cape Town’s advantages, including clean, swimmable beaches, accessible water sports, affordable youth entry points, and pathways for small firms, position it perfectly to grow the sector.
Partnerships Driving Growth
Surf Expo Africa lists City of Cape Town, BlueCape, Mission for Inner City Cape Town, and South African Tourism “in association with” the show, showing destination marketing and sector development working in tandem. When visitor numbers rise, ocean-recreation businesses feel it first: more lessons booked, more gear sold, and more trade in shorefront cafés and stores.
“As a city flanked by two oceans, Cape Town has long embraced the opportunities of the sea, from fishing and marine activities to hosting major events,” says JP Smith, Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security. “Surf Expo Africa provides a platform to unlock new possibilities from the ocean, supporting the sectors that thrive alongside it.”
“Partnerships matter,” adds Cumming. “From surf clubs in Muizenberg to kite schools in Blouberg and cold-water swim crews along the Atlantic, this is about opening the tent. Buyers meet founders. Kids meet mentors. And the rest of us remember why a day at the beach can change the trajectory of a neighbourhood.”
Surf Expo Africa runs 28–30 November 2025 at CTICC 2 in Cape Town. It covers surf, wind, paddle, swim, beach, and travel, with space for brands, clubs, tour operators, NGOs, and skills programmes. Tickets are available, and exhibitor and buyer registrations are open.
For the Western Cape to grow jobs that match the place we live — resilient, outdoors, inventive — putting the ocean front and centre makes sense. An expo will not solve everything, but it can do what only a live, local marketplace can: turn stoke into strategy and ideas into invoices.
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