Page 19 - KZN Top Busines Portfolio 2020/21

always treasure the relationships that you have with Gambling and Betting Board which are working
your clients – whether they are paying very well or they together to find key projects in the province where
are not paying.” She emphasised that Ithala is open to resources can be combined and projects driven
conversations with clients in order that they may assist to fruition.
where possible.
Willowton Group and Alabrakra Bank have created
A key takeaway in the ‘people first’ response is: How the Giving for Hope Foundation which was set up to
do we engage with all our business stakeholders help SMMES who were impacted by the lockdown.
going forward? As said Sewnarain, “Customers are Funding is provided to small businesses interest
always looking for quality, service and value which free, administration cost free, and profit free for up
are the fundamentals of any business success.” to two years.
Currently customers are also looking for “innovation Masilela stressed the role of the private sector in
and new experiences.” An important question to growing South Africa’s economy through investment.
ask is, “How can we provide these to clients of our “The pandemic has bought a new level of expenditure
respective businesses?” and we cannot rely on state alone. We can hope that
Finances government will focus on policy making, ensuring
that the private sector is able to operate in an
The questions of managing debt and company environment that is profit enhancing and sustainable
finances over the lockdown period was paramount
in many boardroom discussions. Mvundra said, “It for generations,” he said.
was essential to continue to manage risk and to “We need to have an impact and we need foot
be transparent.” soldiers from the private sector to make an impact
and to do this at scale instead of in different corners
IBV International Vaults’ response was to keep of South Africa.”
debt low and to manage its finances. The company
approached creditors, negotiated discounts and Communications
cashed in investments to pay off debts. For businesses to engage and collaborate with all
Moosa commented that the Willowton Group. as an stakeholders and other entities, the need for effective
agro processing and essential supplier, had largely not channels of communication was emphasised.
been affected by lockdown measures. Consequently, The FD Centre had to move to a digital platform for
they were able to set aside finances to assist micro consultations with clients, which said De Klerk was
businesses. However, he expressed concern that initially quite difficult but has happened seamlessly.
assisting was not just about lending money but This platform has provided an opportunity for the
should be about educating such business owners in company to reach a wider audience – both nationally
the management of their businesses’ finances and and internationally in the future.
administration requirements.
Bengu stressed that communication during the
Procurement from small businesses was mentioned as Covid-19 lockdown was important as Ithala needed to
a necessary step in supporting the local economy. As talk to clients directly. However, the need to utilise a
said Mvundra it was necessary to put KZN SMMEs first range of various channels to communicate with clients
before purchasing from outside entities to promote our has become apparent. These channels included using
own provincial economy. Facebook, WhatsApp, and community radio stations.
South Africa is facing a magnitude of financial
problems, said Masilela, including mounting debt and
a fiscal cliff. In addition, the various responses to Covid
-19, have and still do require additional funding.
Collaboration
Significantly, the importance of collaboration was
mentioned as key to sustainability in many of the
businesses represented.
In his role of chairperson of the board of Ithala,
Roshan Morar commented that Ithala was collab-
orating with other KZN government entities to
assist clients. The public entities include KZN
Tourism, Richard Bay Industrial Development Zone,
Dube TradePort, KZN Sharks Board, and the KZN
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