MIGUEL DA SILVA: SMEs battling a perfect storm, but a few key decisions can change their course

A worker sews face masks in Johannesburg. Picture: ALAISTER RUSSELL/THE SUNDAY TIMESOn the morning of June 14 truck drivers blocked the N3 between Warden and Villiers. The N3 is the primary route between the Durban port and the country’s economic and industrial heartland. This matters because it is yet another real time example of the nightmare thousands of small and medium enterprise owners navigate daily.

A month ago the same region was hit by devastating floods that tragically claimed lives and destroyed even more infrastructure, which has wreaked havoc with supply chains yet again. The war in Ukraine has caused a knock-on effect of food supply disruptions, while the oil price and a myriad other factors have put pressure on the rand and inflation at home.

Just recently fears of a national shutdown put schools and businesses on edge — what does one expect, and how does one plan? Anecdotally, there are significant supply chain issues in industries as diverse as wood, spares, electronics and food, and where there is supply the prices are erratic, making it almost impossible for small businesses to plan ahead, buy upfront or not pass increases onto customers who are also feeling the pinch.

There needs to be as much investment in private power generation as possible. All businesses should investigate funding to take themselves as close to off the grid as possible, or at the very least able to withstand unannounced power cuts.

The most important intervention is educating SME owners about the difference between bad debt and funding, and why access to capital is vital to scale and survive one knock after the other, and then thrive when conditions turn.

South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

MIGUEL DA SILVA: SMEs battling a perfect storm, but a few key decisions can change their courseIt’s certainly pouring of late, but SMEs can weather this storm if government, larger businesses and entrepreneurs act now
Source: BDliveSA - 🏆 12. / 63 Read more »

WEBINAR | Paving the way for women-owned SMEsSPONSORED | Register now for the Business Day Women Economic Empowerment Dialogue when an expert panel will discuss how corporate SA can provide the support needed to drive women-owned SMEs towards sustainability. ArenaEventsZA
Source: BDliveSA - 🏆 12. / 63 Read more »

WEBINAR | Paving the way for women-owned SMEsSPONSORED | Register now for the Business Day Women Economic Empowerment Dialogue on June 28 at 9am I was scammed through Bitcoin couple of months ago, I started hating Bitcoin until I was introduced to Allison_Grillo, and I gave Bitcoin trading another try, I successfully withdrew $35,000 after two weeks of trading, am so grateful Allison_Grillo thank you.
Source: BDliveSA - 🏆 12. / 63 Read more »

MIGUEL DA SILVA: SMEs battling a perfect storm, but a few key decisions can change their courseIt’s certainly pouring of late, but SMEs can weather this storm if government, larger businesses and entrepreneurs act now
Source: BDliveSA - 🏆 12. / 63 Read more »

Cosatu unhappy with Tiger Brands' decision to close Ashton canning businessThe trade union federation has called for urgent intervention and wants the company to review the decision and explore alternatives to shutting down the factory. I never believe in making money online before but since I started seeing different people testifying about Sarah_Elliott4 ,i was so interested in to investing with her because all friends who Invested have all received their profits successfully and so do I Sarah_Elliott4 😂😂😂 Cosatu must buy the business. And employ all the staff at the salaries they demand. Show us how to run things, cosatu. Or you only loud with other peoples money?
Source: ewnupdates - 🏆 30. / 53 Read more »

A ‘perfect storm’ threatens Southern African citrus industrySouthern Africa’s citrus industry is battling a “perfect storm” of increased production, rising farming input costs and a decline in export prices that threaten to erode its profitability. Moneyweb Farming Production
Source: Moneyweb - 🏆 5. / 77 Read more »