Village Personality for the month of March – Tom Scholtz

Tom Scholtz is a familiar face at Noordhoek Farm Village. Tom is the owner of African Experience and this month we tell you more about Tom who features as our March Village personality! A warm smile and friendly banter characterize this interesting gentleman – and a gentleman he is! 

Tom grew up in the Kwazulu Natal Midlands, in the foothills of the southern Drakensberg where is family had a farm. Tom says, “The farm was about 30 km from the 'one horse town and the horse died' called Ixopo.” Not only is humour part of his make-up but a farm upbringing gave him a love of the outdoors and where he learned to fly fish. Fly fishing is still today one of his favourite pastimes. Tom still tries to go back to the Drakensberg as often as he can.
 
Tom finished his schooling in 1976 and did his military service. He managed to find a great job in the army in the Namibian  Koakoveld, where he ended up running the Water supply department for the legionary Ben van Zyl. Tom stayed on until 1981 installing and supplying windmills and pumps to the Himba people. One Headman was so grateful he even offered Tom his daughter as a wife! It appears Tom declined the offer as he is married to the wonderful Janet and have a daughter named Jessica who is now 11 years old. Whilst in Namibia Tom was also the neutral guide for the first two elections in Namibia.
 
Life turned to the media world in the ‘80s when Tom worked for the SABC and later SABS in Cape Town. Fortunes led him to Johannesburg where he only managed to survive one year. Such was his distress at living in Jozi that he promptly moved to Cape Town just as the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront was getting started and developed. Tom being a go getter and self starting entrepreneur got involved and opened a fruit and vegetable shop in the V&A Waterfront – which was very successful for 10 years.
 
But it seems that his roots were in farm country and he moved to Noordhoek, with its’ rural feel and leafy lanes 5 years ago to join his sister Sally with their shop African Experience.  African Experience is located in the “Milking Shed” at Noordhoek Farm Village and offers an extraordinary range of ecelectic, contemporary and imaginative hand made African crafts. Tom is proudly South African and was a founder member of the Proudly South African movement. What’s more - Tom and African Experience won an award as a Carrol Boyes Functional Art stockist – not bad for a little shop in the country.

You’ll notice African Experience at Noordhoek Farm Village by the bicycle outside the front of the shop and Tom’s smiling face at the front door. (Don’t forget to ask Tom about his bicycle hire options. Tom is such a good soul that if you get too far and can’t get back he’ll even come and fetch you!).

Tom – thanks for your commitment to Noordhoek Farm Village and your customers, for your consistency and reliability. Tom is the guy that will always be there for you – whatever the situation and we are proud to call him our Village Personality for the month of March.