Small Business Connect was at the DTI’s National SMME Summit held in Mpumalanga recently. Here business owners had the opportunity to ask questions and raise important challenges they face. The common challenges highlighted were access to retail shelf space with large retailers, not having time to manage different aspects of the business and access to… [Continue Reading]

A new Co-operatives Development Agency, and Co-operatives Training Academy, will open soon, says the Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Elizabeth Thabethe. Speaking at the DTI’s national SMME Summit, Thabethe said that these institutions, together with a Co-operatives Tribunal, will help develop the sector. Further details are sketchy at this stage, but it is likely… [Continue Reading]

The Director-General of Trade and Industry, Lionel October, issued a strong message of caution to business owners to be wary of using so-called “consultants” to assist them to register or change the details of companies with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC). “There are small businesses who are falling prey to consultants who are… [Continue Reading]

WE all have ideas. Some of them, if not most of them, dissolve away into our busy lives or starve for lack of attention. But some of them are so good that they demand attention and won’t let us rest. These are the business ideas that often have the potential to make a difference in… [Continue Reading]

IT takes a lot of effort preparing a tender or bid. From studying the bid requirements, to collecting the needed information, to determining your capacity needs, to costing, to confirming the source of supplies, to writing a compelling document, to collecting all the needed certificates and compliance documents, to presenting it all in a tender… [Continue Reading]