Boxing clever with fruit, veg
INSTEAD of becoming another unemployment statistic, Siphokazi Chiliza found a way to earn a living.
Chiliza moved from her rural hometown of ezinqoleni, near Margate, to the city in 2012 and studied business management at the Durban University of Technology.
She dropped out after her first year after losing her financial support from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).
“I just could not afford to study and losing that support was crushing. My family was counting on me, and I could not just give up.”
She began working at restaurants and in call centres to save money towards her studies, pay her rent and send money to her parents.
“I tried to apply for NSFAS support five times now, and I have been rejected every time. I just can’t afford the registration fee, and studying is impossible without help. But I will not stop trying.”
She planned to register and study through Unisa if she was able to raise the funds.
That was when the 27-year-old had the epiphany to sell fruit and vegetables after a visit to the Clairwood market two weeks ago.
“I was looking at these people making a living, and being their own boss. I knew I could do it. I just needed to start.”
So she decided that she, too, could do it.
Her business began by asking friends on Whatsapp and having them share her special offer that she was selling five vegetables or four fruits for R50.
She also posted on Facebook, and her business boomed after it garnered close to 1 500 shares in three days.
“I got some very weird requests at first. People asked for turnips, aubergines and zucchinis. That was when I set it to the staples in potatoes, sweet potatoes, amadumbe, tomatoes, pumpkins, cabbages and carrots. For fruit, just let me know as I will need to see if they are available.”
She said deliveries in the Durban central business district were free.
“I personally walk and deliver each order, but if you want me to deliver outside the CBD, then you would have to buy more so that I could make a plan. I don’t have a car. We would just need to speak and reach an arrangement.”
There is a one-day waiting period per order as this allows Chiliza time to procure and clean her produce.
Chiliza gets most stock from the
Clairwood market besides amadumbe, potatoes, sweet potatoes and avocados, which are grown at her family home.
“I go home to stock up and come back to my flat, which is also where I work out of, so my kitchen counters and the fridge has nothing but fruit and vegetables.
“But by the end of March, I plan to grow my own carrots, tomatoes and cabbages and then keep growing on the farm and adding new things.”
Chiliza’s interview was on the back of Finance Minister Tito Mboweni’s Budget speech, where he said 8.2 million (40.1%) of the country’s young people were unemployed.
“I don’t want to make excuses and be part of the unemployed. You just have to think out of the box and find your entrepreneurial spirit,” she said.