Durban Spaza Conference falls short on turnout
Low turnout at Durban’s Spaza Conference disappoints organisers, but attendees gain valuable insights into growing their businesses.
A one-day Spaza Conference at The BAT Centre had about 100 attendees on Friday, March 27, despite 400 registrations, leaving organisers disappointed but vowing to return next year.
The event co-ordinator, Ntsako Lepere, expressed his disappointment over Durban’s low turnout compared to other provinces.
“The turnout in Durban was not what we anticipated. We normally get about 300 spaza shop owners that attend. In Durban, we need to work a little bit more to get the Durban crowd taking ownership of the spaza shop industry,” he said.
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Even with a low turnout, the event was still educational for those who attended. The sessions covered day-to-day operations of spaza shops and how to adhere to compliance rules, such as cleanliness, and removing expired goods from shelves in order to get a trading licence.
“The conference helped me understand the need to have a bank account and the need for filing,” said Sizwe Madlala, owner of Kwamngani Tuck Shop in Cato Manor.
Madlala rose from selling on the streets to running a container shop in his township, Cato Manor.
The aim of this conference was also to register spaza shops into a database for future funding.
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