MyJHB

Stuff from Johannesburg

Minesh Bhagaloo

Minesh Bhagaloo

Ford Motor Company this week announced that Minesh Bhagaloo has been appointed General Manager Communications for Ford Motor Company in South Africa, effective 1 June 2019.

Bhagaloo has been Product Communications Manager since joining Ford in January 2015, and took over responsibility for the Communications Department on an interim basis in March 2019, after Rella Bernardes moved to Ford of Europe.

In his new position, Bhagaloo will report to Katie Dove, General Manager Communications, Ford Middle East and Africa and Neale Hill, Managing Director for South Africa.

“We congratulate Minesh on his appointment to head up the Communications team,” says Neale Hill, MD of Ford Motor Company Sub-Saharan Africa Region. “Minesh will continue the efforts of the company to focus and align with customers, building on Ford’s aspiration to become the world’s most trusted company – designing smart vehicles for a smart world.”

Bhagaloo brings a wealth of industry experience to the role, holding a BA Honours degree in Journalism and Media Studies from the University of the Witwatersrand, and fueling his passion for all things automotive and motorsport-related as a motoring writer for a decade prior to joining Ford.

The appointment of a new Production Communications Manager will be the subject of a future announcement.

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The Oriental Plaza: A Phoenix in Fordsburg

If Johannesburg is a city of forced displacements, the Oriental Plaza is its most resilient response. While the Rand Club was built for the elite and Ponte for the “jet-set,” the Oriental Plaza was born from the trauma of the Group Areas Act—a piece of Apartheid legislation designed to geographically separate the races. Yet, in true Johannesburg fashion, what was intended as a tool of containment and financial ruin for the Indian community transformed into one of the most vibrant, independent commercial powerhouses in the country.

The story of the Plaza begins with the destruction of Pageview, affectionately known as Fietas. In the mid-20th century, Fietas was a legendary multicultural hub, centered around the bustling 14th Street. It was the city’s premier destination for textiles, clothing, and spices, where shoppers of all races would rub shoulders in a “jazzy, soulful” atmosphere. However, because Fietas was located so close to the white-only city center, the Apartheid government declared it a “white area” in 1962. The community fought back for decades, but by the 1970s, the bulldozers arrived. Homes were leveled, and the thriving traders of 14th Street were forcibly relocated to a purpose-built, modernist complex a kilometer away in Fordsburg: the Oriental Plaza.

The government’s intent was cynical: by moving the traders into a controlled environment with high state-mandated rents and strict rules on what could be sold, they hoped to break the back of Indian commercial dominance. The early years were devastating; many businesses folded, and the “Grand Bazaar” felt like a sterile warehouse compared to the street-level energy of Fietas. However, the traders refused to vanish. They eventually won the right to purchase their own shops, making the Oriental Plaza unique among South African malls because it is owned by the shopkeepers themselves rather than a corporate landlord. This ownership model changed everything. Without the burden of massive monthly mall rentals, the 360+ independent stores can offer prices that national retailers cannot touch, turning the Plaza into a “bargain-hunter’s paradise” that draws millions of visitors a year.