Mother, daughter and Oskar - a winning team

Writer: Elaine Davie.

None of us had the faintest clue about how to run a coffee shop or restaurant; we just muddled along and learnt on the job,” confesses Sanmarie Swanepoel (the mother) of Oskars Café and Bakery. “Actually, all we knew about food was that we loved it,” adds Lizanne Olivier (the daughter), with a laugh.

And what about Oskar? Well, it turns out Oskar was more of an inspiration than an actual person, but like some of the other apparently random ideas of this creative family, it was definitely a winner. A mother of four, Sanmarie had always cherished the dream of owning her own guesthouse and coffee shop, so when she and her pharmacist husband decided to retire to Hermanus from Bronkhorstspruit, she saw her chance. The guesthouse came first, but as soon as it was well and truly established, she felt it was time to fulfil the second part of her dream.

Perfect partners: Daughter Lizanne Olivier and Mom, Sanmarie Swanepoel together run pocket-sized Oskars, one of the busiest bakeries and coffee shops in town.

PHOTO: Elaine Davie

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