SAA assists suppliers with rent-free office space and ensures that they are paid within seven days.
As a supplier , business owners will have two of their top ten concerns taken care of. This is a promise by the South African Airways (SAA) to its small suppliers. So, what are these concerns, you may ask?
According to Tlali Tlali, SAA spokesperson, business owners will be paid on time, and their rent will be paid by the state-owned enterprise.
SAA’s core business is the provision of passenger airline and cargo transport services, together with related services provided through SAA and its four wholly-owned subsidiaries: SAA Technical; Mango, its low-cost carrier; Air Chefs, SAA’s catering entity; and the South African Travel Centre.
“The cornerstone of SAA’s enterprise development programme is that it pays its small business suppliers within seven days and provides office space free of charge.
The aim is to alleviate some of the challenges facing small businesses and to boost cash flow,” says Tlali.
To apply to become a SAA supplier, business owners need to complete the supplier questionnaire that is available on SAA’s website.
This must be accompanied by the supporting documents indicated on the form.
“Those business owners whose applications have been approved are then included on SAA’s supplier database and are allowed to bid for tenders when these become available,” says Tlali.
Small businesses should satisfy the following criteria to be considered as a potential supplier: it must be 50% black-owned or 30% black women-owned, have a valid original tax clearance certificate, a valid original Black Economic Empowerment certificate, a bank account, Companies and Intellectual Property Commission registration documents, and shareholder certificates where applicable.
SAA procures the following products and services from suppliers: courier services, printing services and devices, aviation and general security services, stationery, training service providers, internal and external audit services, gardening and landscaping, air-conditioning maintenance services, cleaning services and supplies, baggage delivery services (maintenance and weighting), crew transport, domestic, marketing, advertising, media and communication services, clothing and textiles, general construction works and office furniture.
Tlali says the carrier is developing a supplier-specific training module.
This module will provide training to suppliers on SAA’s tender and procurement process and tender document completion.
The training will be facilitated through SAA’s Learning and Development Unit. Further support to suppliers includes informing them of SAA’s supply chain management policy and guidelines.
- To access the online supplier questionnaire, go to www.flysaa.com