Buy in your neighbourhood on Small Business Friday
ENTREPRENEURS and small businesses are the key to South Africa’s increasing unemployment problem, according to Mike Anderson, the National Small Business Chamber (NSBC) founder and chief executive, who will launch Small Business Friday on September 6 in a partnership with Nedbank.
NSBC joined with Nedbank to create Small Business Friday, an idea that mirrors Small Business Saturday in the US.
He said the South African spirit of supportive Fridays was at the heart of moving the local version to that day.
“It’s all about a movement. We must make it a part of our daily lives, you wake up in the morning and you go to support your local business,” Anderson said, adding that job creation would come primarily from the small business sector.
Figures released earlier this week by Statistics SA showed that the country’s official unemployment rate rose to 25.6 percent in the second quarter, compared with 25.2 percent in the first quarter and 24.9 percent in the three months to June last year.
The expanded unemployment rate, which includes discouraged job seekers or people who have given up looking for work, now stands at 34.1 percent.
The NSBC is the largest organisation supporting small and medium-sized enterprises in South Africa. It represents 67 000 businesses.
Anderson identified one of the main characteristics of an entrepreneur: resilience, believing in yourself, and loving what you do.
“There is a high casualty rate when businesses first start out, so being able to embrace failure is part of what you have to do,” he said, adding that “we don’t often see the famous, successful entrepreneurs when they are down in the gutter, but it is part of the journey”.
Anderson said there were high stakes involved when a business began, so it was important that entrepreneurs had their whole families on board before embarking on a business venture. That was one of the keys to success.
“It’s important that the family is on the same team and everyone says: ‘No matter what happens, we stick together’,” Anderson said.
Small businesses boost not only neighbourhood and community economies, but also the national economy, according to the National Planning Commission’s Vision 2030 document. This blueprint puts the spotlight on developing more innovative small businesses, which it says will benefit the country.
Anderson said the country must rally behind small businesses on Small Business Friday, by making purchases from them.
He said the public could also follow the media and show their support on social media.
Small Business Saturday in the US is held on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, during one of the busiest shopping periods of the year.
The first Friday of South Africa’s spring season will be declared Small Business Friday.
“We hope to create a frenzy on all platforms and beyond, so that we can eventually change our everyday patterns to support local businesses,” Anderson said.
For more information visit Small Business Friday’s website: www.smallbusinessfriday.co.za.
Business Report is the print media partner for the Small Business Friday initiative.