THE Featherbed Nature Reserve has been sold to a Johannesburg-based businessman, Kobus Smit.
The property is not expected to change in any form and Smit will also run the John Benn Company, which owns the ferries on the Knysna Lagoon, the Cruise Café Restaurant and the tours of the reserve.
“Featherbed has been our lives for a very long time,” said former owner, William Smith, “but we’ve come to the age where we’d like to retire. Although a number of people approached us about buying the land, we felt that Kobus was the right choice because he wants nothing more than to continue the work we’ve done here.”
Smit has named Jannie Gie, who has extensive managerial experience in the hospitality industry, to act as the company’s general manager.
“The only change that tour operators might experience is an improvement in the experience we offer, but they can rest assured that it will continue to offer the same level of service and the same tours well into the future,” said Smit.
