Pippa Mickleburgh has landed a new position at Race Coast where her goals will be to improve the experience for the racegoer at the racecourse and also attempt to grow the CRS (Cape Racing Sales) Sales.
She said, “Originally I wanted to help Race Coast make the day better for the racegoer, make the whole experience better, including the food service and wine service, but the job has morphed a little bit and now they want me to help with the Sales as well.”
She continued, “So the latter will entail vendor liaison, buyer liaison, making the Sales grow, get more support, make sure the vendors are happy and the buyers are happy, choose the right horses and make sure the Sales are run efficiently by MJ (Byleveld) and Vicky (Minott). MJ and Vicky are extremely dedicated and energetic, but they’re new at it and I think they need a nice leader to help them tick all the boxes and I bring experience from both sides, vendor and buyer. They both have the right ideas and I think we will work together well.”
Pippa explained what she meant by the “right horses, “We know there are two Sales companies and the breeders have a choice. The way I look at it is that when I was at Avontuur I supported both entities. I used to send the right horses to the right Sale. It is like a trainer putting a horse in the right race. Choose the right Sale for the horse. I will be able to help breeders a lot with that as that has been my job for just about all my life. It would be nice if the two Sales were not so close together and maybe in the long run there is a chance the two companies could work little bit more together if possible, but that is not my mandate right now, I have got to try and grow the Sales I’ve got to look after.”
Pippa will also be attempting to attract buyers, including overseas buyers, and said, “It is hard to have a full time job and then try and get buyers. TheTBA has a hundred years of expertise whereas Cape Racing Sales has only two or three, so it is quite hard to grow. But they have a great starting point and we need to take it to the next level now and that is really what I have got to do to try and help them and I am looking forward to it.”
She said about racemeetings, “My job will be to look after the clients and ensure everybody has a wonderful day’s racing and that includes everybody from the man in the street to the rich and famous. We will be out to make it a great day for everybody not just the members and it is the same at the Sales … there are some big, powerful people in the Sales arena and then there are lots of small people in the Sales arena. Life is like that … sometimes you feel you are not so famous or you are not so popular and maybe you are not getting the care you need, so we must fix all those gaps.”
Pippa is approachable and personable and is well known by everybody in racing, so she will be able to ask the grandstand patrons as well as the ones in the more elite places how they are enjoying the day and what can be improved on.
She said, “I want to try and fix as many problems as a I possibly can. It is a big job, but nobody is doing it at the moment. At Hollywoodbets Kenilworth there are a lot of people working very hard, but they need more direction.”
She concluded, “So that is what I will be trying to do and for some unknown reason everybody talks to me, so I am not saying I will be fantastic, but I know I will try hard and I talk to everybody, Kings, Queens, Butchers and Bakers, everybody, and will try and see where I can help.”
Pippa gained vast experience in throughbreds and hospitality as the general manager of Avontuur Estate for decades and Justin Vermaak, Race Coast Executive for Racing and Bloodstock, summed up what she would bring to the table, “Avontuur’s world-class standards applied in the diversity of their operations, from breeding champions to customer service in the sales arena, and their award-winning restaurant, and is a microcosm of what we are striving to achieve at Race Coast. Pippa’s vast experience and her no-nonsense roll-up-the-sleeves approach is the tonic that will inspire our youthful team to perform at the standard required to take us to the next level. We are privileged to welcome her on board.”
