By South Africa’s emerging women entrepreneurs must leverage strategic partnerships, collective purchasing power, and technology to break growth barriers and integrate into broader value chains.
This was the central message delivered by the Deputy Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic), Mr Zuko Godlimpi, during an empowerment workshop hosted by the Methodist Church’s Young Women’s Manyano in Ku Gompo, Eastern Cape. The event, attended alongside Buffalo City Mayor Princess Faku, focused on equipping young women with actionable information on accessing government support initiatives to boost local enterprises.
Leveraging Scale and Purchasing Power
Addressing attendees, Deputy Minister Godlimpi emphasized that individual effort alone is rarely sufficient to build resilient, competitive enterprises in today’s economic landscape. Instead, local business owners must harness economies of scale and collective buying power to secure competitive advantages.
Godlimpi pointed to local artisan talent—highlighted during a mini-exhibition at the workshop featuring beadwork, pottery, and textiles—as a primary foundation for cooperative growth. He urged entrepreneurs to pool their skills and form formal partnerships and cooperatives to enable bulk procurement and distribution.
Drawing a direct comparison to retail dynamics in local communities, Godlimpi noted that strategic collaboration has been a key factor behind the dominance of foreign-owned spaza shops in townships and rural areas.
“It is these strategies of scale and usage of purchasing power that have enabled foreign nationals to dominate the Spaza Shop sector in the townships and villages,” Godlimpi said. “They have mastered the art of clubbing together, therefore township businesses need to work together in the same way to procure from wholesalers if they wish to compete with foreign-owned spaza stores.”
Overcoming Structural Constraints
The Deputy Minister’s remarks align with recent findings from the Competition Commission of South Africa. A report released by the commission on the township and rural economy revealed that local enterprises face systemic bottlenecks in sourcing, product distribution, and regulatory compliance. These structural hurdles consistently prevent small businesses from scaling, formalizing operations, or integrating into mainstream supply chains.
By forming cooperatives and joint buying groups, local entrepreneurs can navigate these sourcing constraints, lower input costs, and improve profit margins.
Modernization and Global Ambitions
In addition to structural collaboration, Godlimpi urged participants to modernize their business operations. He highlighted the necessity of digital adoption, encouraging entrepreneurs to establish an online presence and utilize technology to market their products to broader consumer bases.
Beyond domestic digital expansion, Godlimpi called on local women-led businesses to look past national borders, tapping into continental and international export markets to drive sustained, long-term growth.
