Cara Reilly

Background

About Cara Reilly

With 20 years of experience in the field of precinct and place management and 4 years as a business journalist before that, I am the Marketing Executive of Westown, Shongweni, a ground-breaking locally-driven destination in the making that is set to bring critical socio-economic investment to the KZN Outer West, the province in general. As an advocate of People-Place Making, I believe that the way we plan, build and manage private and public space must be led by the way people use and interact with the environment around them. Creating sustainable, safe, economically viable places that also encourage positive participation, social integration and ownership means embracing placemaking as a complementary development tool to the planning, construction, operational and management mechanisms that usually guide development. I began my career in Johannesburg in as a journalist and editor for two architectural/construction publications. In 2003 I was introduced to precinct management through an article I wrote on Neil Fraser and the inner city of Jhb, and in 2004 I was appointed as marketing manager for the Sandton Central City Improvement District (CID) under the guidance (and continued mentorship) of Anne Steffny. In 2007 this role expanded to include marketing strategist for the Northern CIDs (Rosebank, Wynberg, Illovo Kramerville). In both these roles, I developed and implemented marketing and placemaking strategies that worked hand-in-glove with the operational management and stakeholder engagement plan for the precincts, some of which are still in place today. In August 2010, I relocated to Durban and in 2011 joined Urban Improvement Precinct (UIP) management company UrbanMGT. As head of marketing and communications for the management precincts of uMhlanga Rocks, Florida Rd, Ballito, Riverhorse Valley, Cornubia and Bridge City, I developed, implemented and managed communication, marketing and place-making tools aimed at capturing the underlying attributes of each area. In 2019 I left UrbanMGT and began consulting to the public and private sectors on projects focused on everything from innovative place management solutions to the creation and implementation of communication strategies including content writing, website building and social media management. In 2022 I was approached to take up the permanent position of Marketing Executive for Westown, Shongweni, a role that brings all the skills I have learned over the last 23 years to the fore and affords me the opportunity to extend them too.