RAISING A GLASS TO FORTY YEARS OF GREATNESS

As the Kingdom marks a monumental milestone with His Majesty King Mswati III’s 58th Birthday and Ruby Jubilee, 40 years of visionary leadership, one of the country’s most celebrated hospitality destinations is joining the chorus of national pride. Thulani Ntshangase, Director of IF’s Lounge Restaurant & Bar, is raising more than a glass. He is offering a testament to what building a business in His Majesty’s Eswatini truly means.

With branches in both Manzini (Moneni, Carson Building)and Mbabane (MVA Building), IF’s Lounge has grown from a single bold idea into a dual-city hospitality brand that locals and visitors alike have come to regard as a must-visit destination. The Manzini branch, now four years strong, laid the foundation. The Mbabane branch, which recently celebrated its first full year of operations, confirms that the vision is flourishing and expanding.

“Every customer who walks through our doors is, in some way, experiencing the Eswatini that His Majesty King Mswati has worked to build, a nation worth visiting, a nation worth celebrating.” Ntshangase shared.

For Ntshangase, the growth of IF’s Lounge is not a story told in isolation. It is, he believes, directly tied to the environment that four decades of stable, forward-looking leadership have created in the Kingdom.

“Eswatini is open for business, when His Majesty took the throne forty years ago, he made a commitment to develop this country, to put Eswatini on the map. Every customer who walks through our doors, whether a local celebrating a milestone or a tourist experiencing the Kingdom for the first time, it is, in some way, experiencing the Eswatini that His Majesty has worked to build. A nation worth visiting. A nation worth celebrating.” the Director shared.

A Tourism Destination in Its Own Right
IF’s Lounge has quietly but decisively positioned itself as part of Eswatini’s growing hospitality and tourism offering. With a warm, contemporary ambiance, quality cuisine, and a bar experience that rivals regional standards, the establishment has become a gathering point for business travellers, tourists on familiarisation tours, and everyday Emaswati alike.

The dual-city footprint, anchoring both the commercial hub of Manzini and the administrative capital of Mbabane, means IF’s Lounge is well-placed to serve every corner of the country’s visitor economy. It is precisely the kind of home-grown enterprise that tourism development frameworks depend on: privately driven, nationally rooted, and internationally minded.

A Birthday Wish from the Director

On behalf of the Directors, Management, and every member of staff at IF’s Lounge Restaurant & Bar, in Manzini and in Mbabane, Thulani Ntshangase extends his most respectful and heartfelt birthday wishes to His Majesty King Mswati III.

Your Majesty, on this most auspicious occasion, your 58th Birthday and the marking of 40 extraordinary years on the throne, I stand as both a businessman and a proud son of Eswatini to say: thank you. Thank you for the Kingdom you have nurtured. Thank you for the stability that allows men and women like myself to dream, to build, and to grow.

IF’s Lounge began four years ago in Manzini as a vision , one branch, one team, one belief that this country deserved world-class hospitality on its own soil. Today, we stand in two cities, serving our people and our visitors with pride. That growth is not mine alone. It belongs to the environment Your Majesty has created: an Eswatini that is open, vibrant, and full of possibility.

As we celebrate your Ruby Jubilee, I commit on behalf of IF’s Lounge to continue playing our part in placing Eswatini on the tourism map of the world.

Your Majesty be blessed with abundant health, enduring wisdom, and many more years of great leadership. We celebrate you today, tomorrow, and always.

Lunwele Loludze Mbangazitha! Happy Birthday, Your Majesty.