Gauteng Rebuilding fund helps pharmacy get back on track after looting
Pharmacist and Entrepreneur Bulelwa Maponya is the owner of Dawn Park pharmacy, based in Dawn Park, near Boksburg, Ekurhuleni. The pharmacy, which employs six, serves communities from Dawn Park, Vosloorus, Leondale and Rondubult and is the only pharmacy within the 8km radius of its location.
Bulelwa founded the pharmacy in 2017 after saving for several years for the start-up capital required for the business. “ It took a lot of work for me to save the amount that I believed at the time would be enough to start this business. I worked numerous locums and sacrificed many personal comforts to start the business”. As she embarked on the initial steps of starting the pharmacy, Bulelwa realised that what she had saved was still nowhere near what she needed to get the business going. The process of raising further funds was one of the more challenging periods in her business.
“Even with collateral and my own owners’ equity, it was still very difficult to source enough funding to finally open the pharmacy; however, I was determined to make it happen, particularly because I was aware of how the community was desperate for quality, but affordable health care services. Through the help of my family, we opened doors in 2017. As a fledgling business, we have had many ups and downs but none so devastating as the looting that took place in 2021”.
In July 2021, when the country was engulfed by looting, the pharmacy was not spared and was looted and damaged along with most of the businesses at the Dawn Park Shopping Centre. “A pharmacy is essentially its stock. We lost almost all our entire stock, most of our equipment and even specialised equipment such as the vaccine fridge was stolen. After the looting, we could not trade for the next month and a half.” she explains.
Bulelwa applied to the Gauteng Enterprise Propeller (GEP) for the Gauteng Rebuilding Fund. “The funds we received from the GEP have helped rebuild my business, and save jobs, as well allowed me to continue serving the community that depends on us so much and live my oath as a health care provider”.
The rebuilding fund is the Gauteng provincial government’s response to the unprecedented challenges facing small businesses in the wake of COVID-19 and looting that affected SMMEs in Gauteng.
The R100m fund is a partnership between the GEP and the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC). Bulelwa has used the funds to replace damaged and stolen equipment and build up the stock levels. She is looking forward to growing her business even further. Since the reopening of her business, sales per month have now increased by 40%.
“I am very encouraged by the ongoing recovery of the business and have set an ambitious but attainable revenue goal for the business, and that it to grow our monthly sales by 100% in the next year or two.
Growth on the Cards for Soweto business after GEP intervention
It was over 21 years ago when Solly Mojapelo, a teacher of English and Economics and his wife Rose, a chemical analyst, teamed up to turn what was then only a hobby into a successful business. Rose, a talented baker, and Solly, the budding salesman, realised that they could make a decent additional income from the demand for baked goods in the community.
“ I used to sell cakes made from our domestic stove to my colleagues, and after school, I would always have deliveries to make, and we soon realised that with more effort, the business had the potential to grow. It was at this point that, much to the surprise of many that I took a plunge to leave my teaching job to run Carnival Biscuits full time”, explains Solly Mojapelo.
Today Carnival Biscuits has two retail stores and a manufacturing unit. The business employs 16 people. In addition to the directly employed personnel, the business has a profit-sharing programme with individual sellers who make a living by selling their products.
Mojapelo, who hails from Diepkloof, Soweto, realised that scaling the business to its current size would mean a change in its product lineup, and as a result, the business turned its focus into biscuits. In 2001, the first retail store was opened at the Highgate Mall.
“We were not just content with making biscuits; we wanted to make the best biscuits. We essentially had our own product development and innovation unit, where we developed our own unique recipes,” explains Mojapelo.
As all businesses do, Carnival Biscuits has experienced its highs and lows. One of their most significant highs was winning the contract to supply long-distance bus company, Greyhound, with biscuits. “Winning the Greyhound contract was a pinnacle for us. It helped improve our quality standards, and we could create more jobs for the people in our community, says Mojapelo. In 2007, we opened our manufacturing space at the Crown Mines” adds Mojapelo. In 2009, they opened the second retail outlet in Bara Mall.
It, therefore, came as a big blow to Carnival Biscuits when Greyhound announced that it would be closing its doors in February 2021. “Greyhound was our biggest client. The impact of their closure was devastating to us. However, we were still determined to keep the business going and find new customers”, Says Mojapelo.
2021 still had far more in store for the business. On Monday 12 July the Bara Mall Carnival Biscuits retail outlet was looted and completely vandalised. The business lost all its stock and all its movable equipment. In addition to theft, the store was vandalised with electrical and telephone cables ripped from the walls. The shop was also flooded causing thousands of rands worth of damage and leaving the store unable to trade for an extended period.
Mojapelo applied to the Gauteng Enterprise Propeller for the Gauteng Rebuilding Fund.
The funds he received from the Gauteng Rebuilding Fund helped the business get back to trading in time for its business period, the festive season. It has helped stabilise cash flow, replace damaged equipment, and just return to normal trading. Mojapelo draws lessons from this experience: “Our business was not insured, today even a spoon is insured”, he states.
Mojapelo is determined to get the business back on a growth path. “I believe that even after the most difficult period for our business, growth is on the cards for Carnival Biscuits”.
