Lucas Radebe Jawitz

Herschelle Jawitz with Lucas Radebe / Image supplies

#RealLifeRealEstate: Lucas Radebe and Jawitz explore the meaning of home

As part of the #RealLifeRealEstate campaign, Radebe reflects on his childhood years, growing up in Diepkloof.

Lucas Radebe Jawitz

Herschelle Jawitz with Lucas Radebe / Image supplies

South African football legend Lucas Radebe and Jawitz Properties have partnered under the banner of #RealLifeRealEstate, a campaign which explores the sentimentality and meaning of home.

Property is more than just a financial asset; it’s more than brick, mortar and mortgages. Real estate represents the spirit of sanctuary, embodying the essence of realised hopes, dreams and desires. A home is cemented with the comfortable sigh of security, furnished with fulfilling relationships and painted with the broad brush of meaningful memories.

It’s the culmination of these elements which bonds physical structure with pertinent storytelling. This is the ethos of the #RealLifeRealEstate campaign, spearheaded by Lucas Radebe, who has recently been appointed as Jawitz’s brand ambassador.

Lucas Radebe explores the meaning of home

Radebe is best known for his incredible international soccer career, built on humble beginnings in dangerous Diepkloof and later on the dusty streets of Zeerust. Radebe made his debut for Kaizer Chiefs in 1989 and went on to achieve international acclaim after being signed to Leeds United in 1994.

Born in 1969, one of 11 children, Radebe grew up in the Diepkloof section of Soweto, near Johannesburg. He eventually moved to one of the former homelands, Bophuthatswana, in Grade 10, as violence in Diepkloof Zone Four intensified.

Watch: Lucas Radebe revisits his childhood home

As part of the #RealLifeRealEstate campaign, Radebe reflects on his childhood years, growing up in Diepkloof. In an emotionally charged video, Radebe recounts, with natural nostalgia, the adolescent innocence attached to his family home which formed the foundation for his formative years. Radebe reminisces on the overcrowded household, saying:

“We shared a four-room house with my parents and ten siblings. The boys used to go and sleep in the kitchen, and the girls would sleep in the dining room.

My brothers and sisters, we used to fight a lot – over food and over the space where we had to sleep.”

While Radebe’s childhood home environment could be described as overcrowded and sometimes a bit tense – the soccer superstar admits that familial love and youthful exuberance made an otherwise uncomfortable experience much more bearable. Radebe explains:

“There was nothing better – coming home after playing football, especially when you can smell your mothers cooking – that’s the best thing ever.

I have stayed in many houses in my lifetime. From Diepkloof Zone 4 to Bophuthatswana, all the way to Elland Road in Leeds, but for me there will always only be one home – South Africa.”

Jawitz Properties and Lucas Radebe on #RealLifeRealEstate

According to Herschel Jawitz, CEO of Jawitz Properties, Lucas Radebe was the perfect choice to represent the brand and the ethos of the #RealLifeRealEstate campaign. Jawitz explained the meaningful association, saying:

“Out of actors, actresses, musicians, we’ve found that sports people resonate most with the public and often cut across race, culture, age, gender and religion. You can look to a sports icon without being a sports fanatics.

When we came up with Lucas being a potential ambassador, he definitely ticked all of those boxes and, in fact, now that we’ve started to work with him, I think we underestimated his gravitas and his appeal to the wider public and the unbelievably high regard in which they hold him.

For Jawitz, homes are more than just inventory or stock, they represent memories of sellers and dreams for interested buyers. We are delighted to have Lucas on board, sharing his story, in order to encourage South Africans to share theirs.”

The campaign is being run across social media platforms and encourages South Africans to submit their #RealLifeRealEstate stories with @JawitzProp on Twitter, @Jawitz.Properties on Instagram, and via Facebook. Jawitz adds that the project also aims to uplift the living conditions of South Africans this festive season, saying:

“The brand will be surprising and delighting fans this Festive Season with appliances, vouchers for home furnishings and even the possibility of contributing to rental and property upgrades for someone in need, through various regional radio campaigns.”