It not only has all shades of pink, from the tile design to the floral roof but the women-only safe haven also boasts perfect lighting for snaps and security outside, CCTV cameras, guarded bathrooms and visible personnel to maintain safety and order.
All this, just so that girls’ night outs remain as stress-free as possible.
From the outside, Rockefeller Tavern isn’t as glamorous but walking in, one is met with the affirmation “She lights up the room” above the DJ booth and a revamp fit for queens this Women’s Month.
The pop-up bar was launched on Women’s Day, following a round-table discussion to which Dr Musa Mthombeni, Lebogang Mashile, Lamiez Holworthy-Morule, Asanda Ngoasheng and Khuli Chana made contributions.
As a panel, they spoke of their personal experiences when it comes to worrying about all that could potentially go wrong when women just decide to go out and have fun for a night.
From drinks being spiked, being harassed and sexualised to potentially being kidnapped and human trafficked.
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“There's nothing worse than being uncomfortable in a space that I should be my happiest. I am at my happiest when I DJ. I'm at my happiest when I'm on stage. Yet, I feel uncomfortable because you can literally see the men lust over you. You know, I've had people book me and they've never heard me play,” says Lamiez during the discussion.
“Some don't even know what I play. And it doesn't matter because I look a certain way. And, you know, this has now played a really big role in how women see what we do, or how the world sees what we do. I always say that, you know, years ago when I started DJing, um, there was just a handful of us. It was a really male dominated industry. And I feel like we fought so hard, and I look at where we are now, and I'm two minds about the new era of women in our industry, because you could look at it as them being liberated and being very comfortable in their skin and, you know, being very comfortable with who they are,” she adds.
She also says that “in that same breath, there's another side where these girls now use sex for work, or to get work. I feel like we still have a really long way to go because of that.”
Speaking about the role that men have in the unsafety of women at establishments where they’re supposed to enjoy themselves, Dr Musa says, “Apart from this Rockefeller, if we zoom out a bit and just look at our society in South Africa as a whole, we are an unsafe country. So, it's not just for the going out on a Friday Girls Night out, [sometimes you don't] feel safe in your own home. So as a society, what that does is that it then changes everyone's behavior to what the reality is on the ground.”
Speaking to Drum, the facilitator of the discussion and broadcaster, Azania Mosaka says that as a mother, she would be able to sleep at night knowing that her daughter is having fun at an establishment such as this.
“For so long, we've trained ourselves as women. When we go out to pack, uh, I mean, I remember a time when we supplied our kids, our daughters with mace, literally going into those defence shops and buying cans of mace. We're always doing things like that to manage our own safety, to think and always be looking over our shoulder, which is uncomfortable.
“So, when your children now are in these spaces, my son is 18, my daughter's 25. And this is a time in their lives where they should be revelling and having loads of fun. And going out there and discovering themselves in relation to, um, drinking in relation to the opposite sex, in relation to their own limits. But it's not always easy for them to do that because of the threats that are out there in the environment,” she adds.
Dubbed SheBeen, the establishment by Brutal Fruit Spritzer promises to create a space for all women to be free, comfortable and be inspired to be their authentic self in whatever they wear and however they dance, without fearing a man’s gaze and move.
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Candice van den Bosch, Acting Head of Brand at Brutal Fruit Spritzer says that the alcohol brand is partnering with the South African Breweries (SAB) Sharp’s Responsible Trader Programme to integrate SheBeen’s responsible consumption criteria in ensuring that outlets are compliant.
Explaining further, SAB Corporate Affairs Vice-President, Zoleka Lisa adds that “Through our responsible trading programme audit, we audit 30 000 retailers every year against responsible trading practices. We have identified key elements which relate to creating safer spaces for women including sufficient lighting or visible security. Outlets which meet these criteria are deemed SheBeen compliant and will be rewarded by the brand.”
SheBeen will be open from Thursdays to Sundays for the rest of August and is located in Molapo, Soweto.
