It was a rainy afternoon when my partner and I headed to Long Street Café for the Trends Tour which was something of an 'amazing race' through Cape Town city central, or so we were told.

Quickly armed with brief instructions from our hosts — cherryflava — a cellphone and sense of humour, we left to uncover what the trendier side of Cape Town had to offer.

First was the new Wellness Warehouse at the Kloof Street Lifestyle Centre, which not only offers 'green' products, but which uses green means within their own store.

Passionate about making it possible to live a life that is healthy, environmentally sustainable, socially aware and responsible, the Warehouse is designed to be inspiring, inviting and informative and help you make responsible consumer choices — talk about putting your money were your mouth is.

After receiving our next cryptic clue, it was on to an internet café down the road where we logged onto www.cherryflava.com to discover the online trend of 'the mystery shopper', a phenomenon that's got bloggers interpreting what's great about different stores and what's not. Although this is often somewhat of an advertising ploy, it’s a noteworthy trend that's taking shopping to a whole new level.

A wealth of ideas unlocked

Biblioteq our next 'amazing' destination was literally a few doors up the road. This shop specialises in 'visually fantastic photographic, design and decor reference books', set in a space that's not only aesthetically pleasing but will also stir up those creative juices.

Biblioteq's location is right in the heart of Cape Town's coffee-culture strip and is sure to be a prime destination for the design, advertising, media, film and fashion industry set. It's a far cry from the chain book stores of the world and offers something not many businesses can — a whole new perspective.

Daddy Long Legs already has a reputation that precedes itself. Why? Well their concept of completely unique rooms decorated by local artists — with poets, photographers, designers and even musicians given complete freedom to interpret the space as they pleased — resulting in a collection of hotel rooms that are a representation of Cape Town's contemporary cultural landscape, has proved to be extremely successful in drawing in clientele.

Just a taste of the tour

Although we just got a taste of it, Cherryflava is pioneering the 'trends tour' concept in the streets of Cape Town.

"The idea is to get people out there and experiencing emerging consumer trends for themselves. Once you've experienced emerging global trends in your immediate environment through fresh eyes, you'll be far better equipped to jump on the opportunities around you and dream up new products, services and ideas which are more remarkable and profitable," says owner of a trends and innovation think-tank, Jonathan Cherry.

"Trends tours have been big in Japan for a few years now, but increasingly trend hunters from around the world are looking to South Africa for some fresh inspiration and original entrepreneurial creativity. Cape Town has loads of inspirational creativity littering the streets of our fair city. All you really need to do it get out there and open your eyes to it," remarks Cherry.