Women are shaping the future of Cape Town in exciting ways. From the performing arts and heritage to food, wine and transport, these trailblazers are breaking barriers, creating opportunities and bringing fresh perspectives to their industries. This Women’s Month, we meet five inspiring leaders who are making their mark across the tourism industry, each with a unique story of resilience, creativity and change.
Meet the five women redefining the Cape Town experience:
Marlene le Roux, Artscape
Artscape has played an important role in South Africa’s cultural sector. In 2015, Marlene le Roux became its CEO – the first coloured person, the first woman, and the first person with a disability to hold the position. Born in Wellington, Marlene contracted polio at three months old after apartheid-era racial discrimination prevented her from receiving a vaccine available at the time. Yet far from letting this define her limits, she turned that early experience of exclusion into a lifelong commitment to advocacy and inclusion through the arts. A music teacher by profession, Marlene believes in creating inclusive spaces.
“The arts can tell untold stories and bring people together across cultures, languages, and faiths in a way that political debate on its own often cannot,” she said.
Under her leadership, she has led major accessibility upgrades at Artscape and championed inclusion through initiatives such as the Women’s Humanity Festival and the ArtsAbility Festival. For Marlene, measures such as ramps and assistive listening systems are merely the baseline for a much deeper cultural transformation.
“Physical access, a ramp, a wheelchair-accessible seat, and an assistive listening system are the beginning of inclusion, not the end of it. True inclusion is when disability features are so seamlessly integrated into a space that they become normalised rather than an accommodation someone has to ask for. It is when a person with a disability, a young person from a township, or someone from the LGBTQIA+ community walks into a building like Artscape and feels they have as much right to be on that stage or in that audience as anyone else,” she said.
Siphuxolo Mazwi, Robben Island
Robben Island’s Siphuxolo Mazwi is helping to shape the future of sustainable tourism. Growing up in the small town of Mount Frere (now KwaBhaca) in the Eastern Cape, Siphuxolo always had a deep desire to explore what life beyond her hometown had to offer. Recently recognised as one of Mail & Guardian’s 200 Young South Africans in the Sport, Hospitality & Tourism category, Siphuxolo is also pursuing a PhD in Tourism Management focused on accelerating cultural tourism across Africa.
Siphuxolo is passionate about integrating local communities into tourism value chains and ensuring that cultural assets are commercialised in ways that support long-term socio-economic development. At Robben Island, she champions the conservation of both heritage and biodiversity while making the site more accessible to locals through significant discounts and free entry. Coastal clean-ups with local volunteers are also helping to keep the island’s coastline safe and healthy for marine biodiversity.
“Robben Island Museum holds one of the deepest stories from our past as South Africans. Every day, I learn something new, and through that history I find lessons that relate to the life I live today. It inspires me to have hope, to be resilient, and to hold the deep conviction that nothing remains the same forever,” she explained.
Siphuxolo believes in doing your work diligently and with excellence.
“Be stubborn about your dream, and trust that the universe will respond by carrying you into rooms you never thought you would enter.”
Shannon Jacobs, Groot Constantia
At Groot Constantia, South Africa’s oldest wine-producing estate, Assistant Winemaker Shannon Jacobs is part of the new generation shaping the future of South African wine. A Stellenbosch local with big career dreams, she was recently named among WineLand Media’s 30 Under 30 young wine industry talents for 2026. What began as a fascination with how winemaking seamlessly blends science, agriculture and creativity led her to study Viticulture and Oenology at the Elsenburg Agricultural Training Institute. After fine-tuning her craft through international harvests in Austria and the United Kingdom, where she experienced the physical demands of harvest and navigated language barriers, Shannon joined Groot Constantia’s winemaking team.
“Working abroad taught me more than winemaking. It taught me life skills, including resilience, adaptability, discipline, and how to perform under pressure,” she said.
Shannon brings a fresh, approachable perspective to wine culture. While respecting the Constantia Valley’s immense heritage, she has also developed a newfound appreciation for the versatility and expressiveness of Sauvignon Blanc.
“Sometimes wine becomes too serious. Yes, it can be complex and educational, but it should also be fun,” she said.
As for the next decade, Shannon is clear about what she wants to achieve: “I want to make award-winning wines.”
Chef Nolukhanyo Dube-Cele, Seven Colours Eatery
Seven Colours Eatery, founded by Chef Nolukhanyo Dube-Cele (affectionately known as Chef Nolu), has become a space celebrating South African cuisine, culture and storytelling.
Chef Nolu’s culinary journey is deeply rooted in memory and storytelling. Growing up, she spent her school holidays with her grandparents in the rural Eastern Cape, where she learned from her grandmother about the emotional power of food.
“I wanted to celebrate my culture, tell stories I felt were often missing, and, in many ways, self-actualise. Seven Colours Eatery became a way for me to tell stories through food, particularly those of ordinary South Africans whose experiences and contributions have not always been documented or celebrated,” Chef Nolu explains.
She says her greatest inspiration is the women in her communities.
“Many of them had very few resources or formal opportunities, yet they showed incredible resilience, wisdom, creativity and strength. They built families and communities with what they had,” she added.
Her message to the next generation of female entrepreneurs: “Never lose sight of what makes you unique.”
Aaliyah Jacobs, Legacy Shuttle Services
Navigating a new city should feel seamless and safe. At just 26, Aaliyah Jacobs, Founder and CEO of Legacy Shuttle Services, is making her mark in Cape Town’s transport and tourism sectors by offering personalised travel experiences across Cape Town and the Winelands.
Aaliyah’s connection to transport spans three generations in her family. She launched Legacy Shuttle Services in 2020 with a clear vision: to offer more than simply transporting clients from one place to another.
There have been obstacles that Aaliyah has taken in her stride.
“The greatest challenge has been establishing myself as a young woman in a traditionally male-dominated transport industry. I have sometimes had to work harder to be taken seriously, even by employees, because of my age and gender, but this has strengthened my confidence and taught me the importance of knowing my worth.”
“I am also inspired by women who enter industries where they have traditionally been under-represented and create space for themselves and others,” she said.
Her advice to women who want to get into business is simple: “Do not wait until you feel completely ready. Start with what you have, keep learning, and stay consistent. Most importantly, never let being young, female or underestimated make you question whether you belong in the industry,” she added.
