If you do what you love, it’s not a job

Dineo Kim Kale | Kimberly Holdings

While I might not have known it, my journey as an entrepreneur started when my husband and I moved to a small town. He works in the mining industry as an engineer and I decided to join the same company. However, it was not long before I was unhappy and started thinking about other ways to earn an income.

During this time, I noticed a gap in the market for consumable products that could be supplied to clinics and mines. At the time, the mines would send their trucks into Johannesburg where they would collect the products, so I decided to open up a shop in 2009 and stock the same consumables locally. It was not long before my small business excelled and moved from supplying the mines to supplying hospitals and municipalities too. With a background in hospitality, I understood the products and their importance, and understood the environments in which they were being used.

When I first started my business, I ran into a number of challenges. I recall receiving a large contract with a municipality who wanted me to sanitise a massive office building. Unfortunately, I did not have the capital to do so and had to take out a small loan in order to fulfil the contract. I was also just one person: I was the CEO, I was in charge of sales, and I was the receptionist. I didn’t fully understand my money-making formula, I was concerned about SARS, and I was scared of putting myself out there to find new clients and sell my product. However, since I joined the Raizcorp programme, I have learned about how to manage my finances, I have gained confidence, I have hired staff, and I have learned to get out there and find new clients. Today, there is a very big difference in my business compared to when I started.

By joining the Raizcorp programme, I have been able to find myself and better understand the right way to run my business. When I first started my company, I didn’t think that I could make it, and now I believe in myself. I didn’t have a big vision for my company, and now I see myself building an empire and expanding to include other branches across the country. Thanks to the Raizcorp Guides, I now also have the confidence to bring in more business! I am looking forward to a 3-year contract with a client who has been using my services for 7 years, and I am looking forward to a new range of products that I will be introducing to my clients.

I would like to build an empire that I can leave to my kids one day. There is a quote by Nelson Mandela: “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” If you do what you love, it’s not a job. If you don’t take risks, you’ll never know, and that’s the way that I am now running my business.

I want to thank Raizcorp and Bridgestone for the wisdom that they’ve given me. Give a man a rod and teach him how to fish, and that’s exactly what they’ve done for me. They have given me the knowledge and understanding of how a business works, and now I can go out there and sell my business, and build my company and my career.