Durban - TAKING risks is part and parcel of business.
This has not deterred businesswoman Zamandwandwa Shozi in investing in the right ideas as she navigated her path to becoming the first black woman in South Africa to own a hardware store when she procured Just Build in November.
Shozi was born in Hammarsdale and worked as personal assistant at the Msunduzi Municipality for 20 years. While there, she established a construction company, Dlisela Trading, in 2005 which has grown year on year. She expanded her business portfolio in 2009 when she purchased a house in Scottsville, Pietermaritzburg, which she converted into a bed and breakfast.
Shozi bought two more houses and in 2017 was approached by the Durban University of Technology (DUT) to use her properties for student accommodation.
Shozi said that she had credited her mother from whom she learned the value of seeking opportunities in different markets and her son who she said opened her eyes to going into business full-time.
“I grew up with a mother who was highly self-motivated and taught me not to wait for opportunities but to make them happen.
“She sold fish, fruits and amagwinya (vetkoek) which I also did when I was at school.
“This taught me the value of limiting myself to just one thing. “When my son finished high school he started his own business and I saw the opportunities that could be available to me if I went into business 100%,” she said.
According to the 57-year-old mother of four, the opportunity of owning a hardware franchise was too good to pass up and encouraged others to venture into businesses in male-dominated fields.
“When the opportunity came to be an owner of a hardware franchise last year, I had realised that in business you should not limit yourself.
“I have B&Bs and a construction company that has taught me that you need to learn to be flexible and adjust your strategies to reap opportunities in a new market.
“I would also like to see other women venturing out into other spaces which were said to not be for women, its risky but it can be very rewarding.”
Daily News