Covid19 lockdown, which saw the two editions of this event hosted largely in a hybrid format.
The summit has grown exponentially over the years into a two-day showcase including multiple elements, gathering of various stakeholders of the Buy Local movement, including manufacturers and producers, corporate buyers, enterprise development agencies and programmes, government representatives, as well as policymakers, consumers as well as friends of the Buy Local movement.
Consumers were treated to over 200 high-quality homegrown goods and service providers on the event’s Expo floor, showcasing everything from toys and kiddies’ educational material, stylish furniture and electronics for home and office use, to delectable food and drink products, as well as utility and luxury vehicles.
Aspiring and established SMEs and entrepreneurs had unlimited access to the Business Solutions Hub, an area dedicated to entities and organisations that exist to regulate, legislate, support and advise small businesses. Entities present on site included dispute resolution, business application etc such as the CIPC, CIPS, CGCSA, the dtic, SEFA, SEDA, SARS, SABS, NEF and The BBBEE Commission.
One of the 1st time exhibitors at this year’s summit was the MaShado Sauce, a brand characterised by its aroma of spices, herbs, and tasty locally manufactured sauces. The woman behind the brand is the renowned broadcast and jazz guru Nomshado Twala – best known as “Shado”.
Shado is a well know journalist, DJ, radio and TV producer, as well as an entrepreneur. She is best known for her work in some of South Africa’s popular radio stations including Radio Bop, Metro FM, former P4radio later rebranded to Heart 104.9FM, 567 Cape Talk,702 Talk Radio and SA FM. She is also popular for the work she has done as one of the judges on SA’s Got Talent since 2009.
She also worked for the Sunday Times, Old Mutual Jazz Heritage Magazine, Tribute Magazine, and Two Tone Magazine where she used to write articles. She wrote about several topics including democracy, art, women, and other topics.
“As a little girl growing up, I spent a lot of time helping my mother prepare meals for the family, her sous chef, if you like. So, it was not surprising that during our time in “solitary confinement”, brought about by the Covid19 lockdown, the kitchen became my happy place and cooking, my meditation. And so began the journey, my kitchen became a laboratory of all kinds of herbs, spices, preservatives and sauces” – says Shado about her brand aptly named MaShado’s. She initially experimented with various flavours named after music genres namely the mbube hot sauce, kwela sauce and mbaqanga sauce. She has since decided to focus on the mbube hot sauce as she grows the rest of the flavours.
When asked about her take on the Proudly SA Summit, she alluded to the fact that, it shone a light in her path when it came to the journey involved, from formulating a business idea, presenting it and building it into a reputable brand.
“The platform not only enables one to connect with other entrepreneurs about what is required to successfully run a business, but offers exposure to what other government departments, and business entities are there to support young entrepreneurs, networking with big corporates, and getting to know what they have on the table to support start up entrepreneurs. I would advise anyone who wants to get into business to register with Proudly SA if they want to grow” – Shado concluded.
