The South African Spaza and Tuckshop Association (SASTA) is promoting business opportunities for its members in the mobile telecommunications space, with the aim of contributing towards job creation in SA.
According to SASTA president Rose Nkosi, SASTA will create at least 300 new small enterprises in the telecommunications industry over the next six months.
"We will support, encourage and empower members to get involved in the business of selling prepaid airtime vouchers, an industry with a market size averaging R75 million per day in SA. It is time the small business owners gain easier access to the thriving telecommunications market."
SASTA has signed a joint venture agreement with Catella Consortium, distributor of GotAMinit, which in association with Plum Systems supplies directly to SASTA association members and therefore offers the benefits of bulk buying prices.
The GotAMinit airtime vending machine, which was developed by Plum Systems, is a new product on the market, providing a portable solution to airtime distribution, Nkosi explains.
The battery-powered unit facilitates virtual voucher distribution through the use of GPRS, which makes it possible to have virtual PIN numbers distributed conveniently anywhere in the country on a daily basis, including rural areas. This, she says, reduces the risks and distribution costs associated with paper-based vouchers or prepaid cards.
Nkosi stresses that the focus of the first phase of this initiative will be aimed at empowering spaza and tuck shop owners, who are serious about expanding their business, to become involved. The association will also offer this business opportunity to pavement stall traders and general dealers countrywide.
Association members will also be offered financing options to assist them in becoming involved in this business opportunity, Nkosi says. They will be required to pay an initial deposit of R799, which will secure involvement in the business, with a start-up period of seven days.
"In this way, members, and specifically women, can immediately get involved in this fast-growing industry at a reasonable start-up cost and generate substantial income by taking airtime to the people," says Nkosi.
Share
