Brackendowns specialist inspires aspiring entrepreneurs to dream big

Ricardo de Sousa (34), who wears many hats, has created employment for three people after taking what he describes as the best decision of his life.

He started his own company as an audio and visual specialist in January 2019, called Wi-Fi Audio Control HDMI (WACH) Tec. This was after years of being hesitant to start up his own company, however, he now knows he made the correct decision.

To date, he has created employment for three of his staff who shares his vision and interest about the company.
The Brackendowns resident said that as far back as high school, business has forever been at the back of his mind. He would make an income from simply specialising in car sound equipment.

The passionate de Sousa has over 14 years’ experience in this industry and a bit of information technology background.

He told the RECORD that he was introduced in his line of work purely from doing car sound.

“We do home automation. Everything inside your house gets taken over by your phone. We take away all the remotes in your house and we give you one device – your phone to operate everything from. It is quite a big change, from doing car sound to focusing on this,” he said.

WACH Tec services include home cinema, home automation, surround sound systems, projectors, CCTV, DSTV, Wi-Fi distribution, fault finding, system design, speakers and more. Having lived in Alberton all his life, de Sousa went to Glenview Primary School then Bracken High and furthered his studies in Alberton College.

Big jobs

He recently finished installing a home cinema in Meyersdal, and has just landed a business at Kota Joe in Alberton.

The past year has been busy for de Sousa, with some of the jobs included Crowbar Little Falls Restaurant, LM East Restaurant and OneDayOnly. His list of successful major jobs also includes Spur Wakita, Glenvista Executive Guest House, Greenfields Guest House and Eye of Africa.

Devotion

He is a true believer that what we reap we sow. De Sousa described himself as a hardworking entrepreneur who takes pride in his work.

“I consider myself as a perfectionist. I want to make sure that I deliver the best every time and deliver the love I have for this job,” he said.

He also told the RECORD that giving a job his all is what they count on because their next job relies mostly on referrals.

His hands-on experience has afforded him an opportunity to work as far as Roodepoort, Sandton, Glenhazel and many large parts of Alberton.

“You need to be experienced in this industry. It comes down to problem finding that many times you will not find in books.”

Juggling between being a family man and entrepreneur has never been a problem for the father of one who has been married for 10 years now.

“It’s tough in the beginning, because when things kick off you’re following every lead and much of your time gets taken. Despite having my own business, if my seven-year-old son wants to spend some quality time with me I reschedule everything to be with him,” he said.

Encounters

Despite the joy that comes with providing satisfactory service, he said his line of work presents challenges of its own.

“Getting people to pay, getting the right prices, and making sure you are following the correct currency exchange are some of the challenges that come with the job. Although we keep up with today’s products I spend much of my time doing research,” he said.

Like many other sectors of business, he too has been hard hit by Coronavirus and the country’s lockdown period.

“It felt like we had to start over again. Luckily, we can see the economy coming alive again as people are starting to spend a bit more money,” said de Sousa.

He encouraged aspirant entrepreneurs to grab every opportunity that comes their way.

“If it’s something that you have thought about for a while and an opportunity comes up, give it your all. If something does come up, grab it by its horns because you won’t know until you try,” he said.