The geography of commercial activities in business parks in Cape Town

Abstract

Business parks have increasingly become part of Cape Town’s industrial built environment over the last 25 years. It signifies a shift from large industrial premises to smaller units in communal industrial settings. This paper investigates the types of business activities found in the business parks using the conceptual underpinnings of location theory and industrial cluster theory. Online and fieldwork surveys of the businesses found in 49 business parks in Cape Town, South Africa, were conducted to compile a database of businesses and their activities. Each business was classified using the South African Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes to establish which economic sectors are represented in the business parks. It was found that the predominant economic sectors in business parks were the wholesale and retail trade, which included the repair of motor vehicles, motorcycles and personal and household goods and catering and accommodation, as well as the financial sector consisting of banking, insurance, real estate and business services. Manufacturing activities and commercial, social and personal services were also well represented. The findings indicate that business parks are the popular location for retail-orientated businesses and small manufacturing concerns and affirm the growing importance of the professional and business service sectors. The paper lays the groundwork for further investigation into the multi-scalar economic linkages of firms in business parks in Cape Town.