In a country that is desperate need of successful entrepreneurs, BiBi Cash & Carry Supermarkets offers an inspirational story.
The supermarket chain was founded 23 years ago by Tommy Makhatho, who started working as a waiter at the Carlton Hotel in Joburg. The company is the largest retail operation in SA wholly owned by black people, now has 7 massive outlets in the Free State and 2 in Gauteng.
BiBi’s competitive advantage over the bigger retail stores has always been its superior local knowledge, its flexibility as a smaller player and also, its determination to operate close to the townships and communities where most of its customers live.
How Sheldon Tatchel Grew Legends Barber From 1 Store In Eldorado Park To 50 Across SA
Background
The year was 1976 and Mzansi was burning, as the black youth was protesting against Bantu education.
It was then that the 18 year old Tommy Makhatho walked out of school with nothing but a dream. Although life was hard at the time, he was motivated to try his hand at anything.
It took Tommy over two years to get a lowly job as a waiter at the Carlton Hotel in Joburg. It was there where his life changed forever.
How Kim Reid Built Takealot Into The Largest Online Retailer In Africa
Defining Moment
His life changed the day he met Brian Gule, a flamboyant hairdresser who was dressed in a cowboy hat and boots.
According to Tommy, he was amazed by how Brain would come to the hotel every day and tip him more than what a cup of coffee costed.
Brain liked him because he was always curious about his business and was always eager to learn.
He then took the opportunity to ask him what he was doing for a living and couldn’t believe what he heard…..Brian owned a salon in Soweto.
Brain gave him his first break and employed him as a trainee shampooist in his salon, Blackwave. Tommy then went on to qualify as a professional hairdresser.
Blackwave always had long queues of people who wanted their hair done. That’s when he realized why Brian was making so much money from the business.
How Lekau Sehoana Turned A Loan Of R45 700 Into Drip Footwear Empire
Tommy takes a leap…
In 1982, with R7 000 in the bank, he decided to leave the salon and go at it alone but sadly, he failed to build a clientele and was soon forced to ask for his job back.
According to Tommy, he was over-ambitious and made a mistake of not planning properly.
How Anat Apter Maxed Out Her R10 000 Credit Card & Launched ANAT In 1992
QwaQwa
A then married Tommy resigned from Blackwave salon again and left Soweto for QwaQwa, to launch a salon on the 16th of April 1984, this was make or break.
His wife Thandeka, a teacher by profession, joined the salon business and in four years, they had six branches and R300 000 in the bank.
But the rapid expansion made it difficult for them to control the operation, as they couldn’t manage the business from a distance. This forced them to close the other branches and go back to the original salon.
How Albé Geldenhuys Grew USN To A Global Brand With Billions In Sales
Jabula Cosmetics
The experience taught him that distributing hair-care products from a single main centre would be much easier to control and manage.
With the money generated from the salon business, the Makgathos opened Jabula Cosmetics in 1991, a cosmetic distributor supplying hair products around the Free State.
There were close to 3 000 different stock lines, which meant the business was in need of more storage space and also, more sophisticated planning, management and control systems. Another warehouse was opened in 1992.
How Portia Mngomezulu Turned Portia M Into A Multimillion Skincare Brand
BiBi Cash & Carry Supermarket
In 1998, Tommy ventured into the supermarket sector and launched the first Bibi Cash & Carry store in QwaQwa.
According to Tommy, the name “BiBi,” came when his son Setjaba, couldn’t pronounce his older sister’s name, Nwabisa, so he made things easier for himself by calling her BiBi.
It dawned on him that if a 2 year-old boy could find it easier to call someone “BiBi,” so will the rest of the market…he then officially registered the business, BiBi Cash & Carry Supermarket.
How Siyanda Dlamini Managed To Build A R350 Million Hotel In Menlyn Pretoria
All profits were reinvested back into the business for further expansion. In 1999, a 2nd store was launched at the Setsing Shopping Center. In 2004, a 3rd store was opened at Naledi Mall. BiBi Wholesalers then opened its doors to service small-to-medium enterprises in 2006.
When they conducted their year-end projections for 2006/7, they realized the last two stores wouldn’t survive, so they closed them down, with the aim of looking at other locations.
From the profits of the two Supermarkets, they launched two more stores in 2009 and 2010, respectively. Two years down the line, the first Joburg supermarket was opened.
According to Tommy, one of the most important lessons he’s learnt over the years is that running costs always increase, so if you don’t branch-out, you won’t make profits.
In 2013, he was honored with Sanlam Business Partners Entrepreneur of the Year. In his acceptance speech, he said his dream is to become theee major player in the FMCG market of Africa.
The Makgatho family currently owns 9 Supermarkets, 32 Bibi Express Stores, employing more than 800 people, indirectly supporting 3000+ families. They also contribute to most community-based projects and provide bursaries to a number of students who come from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The Amazing Story of How Amelia Balls Grew Mrs H.S. Balls Chutney To A Global Brand
Legacy
Makhatho’s son, Setjaba, joined the business as a systems manager, after two years being in management at the Southern Sun Hotel Group.
According to Tommy, he sees himself in Setjaba, as he’s a dreamer like his himself and highly innovative. So with him on board, there’s a guaranteed 30 years in the Makgatho family businesses.
Out of all of Tommy’s four children, Setjaba is the only one involved in the business. Nwabisa on the other hand, followed her mother’s footsteps and became a teacher.
In the future, BiBi is looking to expand to all the 9 Provinces in South Africa and also, a possible listing on JSE to raise more money.
experthub
forbesafrica
bibicashandcarry
Get South Africa’s latest entrepreneurial or business success stories delivered right to your inbox — Sign up to Entrepreneur Hub SA’s newsletter today ⬇️⬇️⬇️
I’m Kindly interested in information about entrepreneurs please keep me posted
I am really motivated by this… keep them coming th
Wow, incredible blog layout! How long have you been running a blog for?
you make blogging look easy. The entire
look of your site is excellent, as smartly as the content!
You can see similar: e-commerce and here
sklep online
I’m really enjoying the design and layout of your site. It’s a very easy on the eyes which makes it much more pleasant for me to come
here and visit more often. Did you hire out a designer to create your theme?
Fantastic work!
Hi there, just became alert to your blog through Google, and found that
it is really informative. I’m going to watch out for brussels.
I will be grateful if you continue this in future.
Numerous people will be benefited from your writing.
Cheers!
Wow, awesome weblog layout! How lengthy have you been blogging for?
you made blogging look easy. The whole glance of your
web site is great, let alone the content material!
Pretty great post. I simply stumbled upon your weblog and wanted to
mention that I have really loved browsing your weblog posts.
After all I’ll be subscribing in your rss feed and I hope you
write once more soon!
Hi there, all is going well here and ofcourse every one is
sharing information, that’s in fact good, keep up writing.
Hmm it appears like your blog ate my first comment (it was extremely long) so I guess I’ll just sum it
up what I submitted and say, I’m thoroughly enjoying your blog.
I as well am an aspiring blog writer but I’m still new to the whole thing.
Do you have any points for newbie blog writers? I’d really appreciate it.
Wonderful blog! I found it while searching on Yahoo
News. Do you have any suggestions on how to get
listed in Yahoo News? I’ve been trying for a while but I never seem to get there!
Appreciate it
Hello, I log on to your new stuff like every week.
Your humoristic style is witty, keep it up!
Hey there, You’ve done a great job. I will certainly digg it and personally recommend to my friends.
I’m sure they’ll be benefited from this website.
Terrific work! This is the kind of information that are meant to be shared across the web.
Disgrace on the search engines for not positioning
this publish upper! Come on over and visit my web site
. Thanks =)
Hi! Do you use Twitter? I’d like to follow you if that would be okay.
I’m definitely enjoying your blog and look forward to new
updates.
This design is wicked! You most certainly know how to keep a reader amused.
Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to
start my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!) Wonderful job. I really enjoyed
what you had to say, and more than that, how you presented it.
Too cool!
I needed to thank you for this wonderful read!!
I certainly loved every little bit of it. I have you bookmarked to check out new things you post…
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on website. Regards
Wonderful blog! I found it while browsing on Yahoo News. Do you have any
suggestions on how to get listed in Yahoo News? I’ve been trying for a while but I
never seem to get there! Cheers
This is very interesting, You are a very skilled
blogger. I’ve joined your feed and look forward to in search of extra of your excellent
post. Also, I have shared your website in my social networks
Good replies in return of this matter with genuine arguments and telling the whole
thing on the topic of that.
Everything is very open with a clear explanation of the challenges.
It was really informative. Your website is useful.
Thanks for sharing!
Fantastic website you have here but I was curious
if you knew of any message boards that cover the same topics discussed in this article?
I’d really love to be a part of community where I can get feed-back from other experienced individuals that share the same interest.
If you have any recommendations, please let me know. Kudos!
Howdy! This article couldn’t be written any better!
Going through this article reminds me of
my previous roommate! He continually kept preaching
about this. I’ll send this post to him. Fairly certain he’s going to have a good read.
Thanks for sharing!
You are so interesting! I do not think I’ve truly read through
something like that before. So great to find another person with a few original thoughts on this subject.
Seriously.. thank you for starting this up. This web site is something that is needed on the web, someone with some originality!
Greate article. Keep posting such kind of info on your site.
Im really impressed by your site.
Hey there, You have performed an incredible job.
I will definitely digg it and individually suggest to my friends.
I am sure they’ll be benefited from this web site.
I’m truly enjoying the design and layout of
your website. It’s a very easy on the eyes which makes
it much more enjoyable for me to come here and visit more often. Did you hire out a developer to create your
theme? Great work!
I’m impressed, I must say. Rarely do I come across a blog that’s equally educative and amusing, and
without a doubt, you’ve hit the nail on the head. The problem is
something which too few men and women are speaking intelligently about.
I am very happy that I stumbled across this during my hunt for something concerning this.
you are truly a good webmaster. The web site loading velocity is amazing.
It seems that you are doing any distinctive trick. Furthermore,
The contents are masterwork. you have performed
a great job on this topic!
Hi, I think your site could possibly be having browser compatibility
problems. When I look at your web site in Safari, it looks fine
however when opening in I.E., it has some overlapping issues.
I simply wanted to provide you with a quick heads up!
Apart from that, great site!
Very good info. Lucky me I recently found your blog by accident (stumbleupon).
I’ve book-marked it for later!
Heya i am for the first time here. I came across this board and I find It truly useful & it helped
me out much. I hope to give something back and aid others like you aided me.
I like the helpful info you provide in your articles.
I will bookmark your weblog and check again here regularly.
I am quite sure I will learn a lot of new stuff right here!
Good luck for the next!
It’s in reality a great and helpful piece of info.
I’m happy that you just shared this useful information with us.
Please stay us up to date like this. Thanks for sharing.
I think the admin of this website is truly working hard for his web page, because here every data is quality based stuff.
Hey, I think your blog might be having browser compatibility issues.
When I look at your blog in Firefox, it looks fine but when opening in Internet Explorer,
it has some overlapping. I just wanted to give you a quick heads up!
Other then that, excellent blog!
What a material of un-ambiguity and preserveness of valuable familiarity on the topic
of unexpected feelings.
I don’t even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post was good.
I don’t know who you are but certainly you are going to a famous blogger if you aren’t already 😉 Cheers!
Hey there are using WordPress for your blog platform? I’m new to
the blog world but I’m trying to get started and create my own. Do you require any html coding expertise to make your own blog?
Any help would be really appreciated!
Hmm it seems like your blog ate my first comment (it was super long) so I guess I’ll just
sum it up what I wrote and say, I’m thoroughly enjoying your blog.
I too am an aspiring blog writer but I’m still new to everything.
Do you have any tips and hints for novice blog writers? I’d definitely appreciate
it.
I seriously love your website.. Very nice colors & theme.
Did you develop this website yourself? Please reply back
as I’m planning to create my very own site and would like to learn where you got this from or what
the theme is called. Thank you!
Hi there! I realize this is kind of off-topic but I had to ask.
Does building a well-established blog such as yours take
a lot of work? I am brand new to running a blog however I do write in my diary every day.
I’d like to start a blog so I can share my personal experience and views online.
Please let me know if you have any suggestions or tips for new
aspiring bloggers. Appreciate it!
Howdy I am so grateful I found your blog, I really found you by error, while
I was browsing on Bing for something else, Regardless I am here now and would just like to
say thank you for a marvelous post and a all round interesting
blog (I also love the theme/design), I don’t have time
to read through it all at the minute but I have bookmarked
it and also included your RSS feeds, so when I have time I will be back to read much
more, Please do keep up the excellent b.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts about website. Regards
Asking questions are really pleasant thing if you are not understanding anything totally,
except this piece of writing offers good understanding
yet.
At this moment I am going to do my breakfast, later than having my breakfast
coming yet again to read more news.
You’re so awesome! I don’t suppose I’ve truly read
through a single thing like this before. So good to find someone with a few
unique thoughts on this topic. Seriously.. many thanks for starting this up.
This web site is something that is required on the web, someone with
some originality!
I must thank you for the efforts you have put in writing
this blog. I really hope to see the same high-grade blog posts from you later on as well.
In truth, your creative writing abilities has motivated me to get my own website now
😉
You actually make it seem so easy with your presentation but I
find this matter to be actually something that I think I would never understand.
It seems too complicated and very broad for me.
I am looking forward for your next post, I’ll
try to get the hang of it!
I always spent my half an hour to read this weblog’s posts daily along
with a mug of coffee.
This is really fascinating, You are an overly professional blogger.
I’ve joined your feed and look ahead to in the hunt for extra
of your magnificent post. Additionally, I’ve shared
your website in my social networks
My brother suggested I might like this website.
He was totally right. This submit actually made my day.
You cann’t consider simply how so much time I had spent for this info!
Thanks!
This post provides clear idea for the new users of blogging, that in fact how
to do blogging.
What’s up friends, its great article on the topic of educationand completely defined,
keep it up all the time.
It is perfect time to make some plans for the longer term and it is time
to be happy. I have read this submit and if I could I desire
to counsel you some interesting issues or advice.
Perhaps you can write subsequent articles referring to this article.
I desire to learn even more issues approximately it!
What i do not understood is in reality how you are no longer
really a lot more well-liked than you might be right now.
You are very intelligent. You recognize thus
considerably in the case of this subject, made me personally consider it from numerous various
angles. Its like men and women don’t seem to be interested until it’s something to do with Girl gaga!
Your individual stuffs great. At all times handle it up!
Inspiring quest there. What occurred after?
Take care!
Pretty great post. I just stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say that I
have truly loved browsing your weblog posts. In any case I will
be subscribing to your feed and I’m hoping you write
once more soon!
I love what you guys are up too. This sort of clever work
and coverage! Keep up the very good works
guys I’ve added you guys to our blogroll.
Appreciate this post. Will try it out.
It’s an awesome post in support of all the internet users; they will get benefit from it
I am sure.
I think that everything posted made a bunch of sense. But,
consider this, suppose you added a little information? I mean, I don’t want to tell you how
to run your blog, but suppose you added something to maybe grab folk’s attention? I mean From Dropping Out
of School To Owning Supermarkets Worth Billions – Tommy Makgatho – is a little boring.
You should peek at Yahoo’s front page and note how they create article titles to get people to open the
links. You might add a video or a picture or two to grab people excited about everything’ve written. In my opinion, it would bring your blog a little livelier.
I will immediately grasp your rss as I can’t to find your
e-mail subscription hyperlink or newsletter service. Do
you’ve any? Kindly allow me understand in order that I may subscribe.
Thanks.
It’s a shame you don’t have a donate button! I’d without a
doubt donate to this excellent blog! I guess for now i’ll settle for book-marking
and adding your RSS feed to my Google account. I look forward to fresh updates
and will share this blog with my Facebook group. Talk soon!
I blog frequently and I seriously thank you for your information. Your article has really peaked my interest.
I’m going to take a note of your blog and keep checking for new
information about once a week. I subscribed to your RSS feed as well.
Good day! I could have sworn I’ve been to this site before but after checking
through some of the post I realized it’s new to me. Nonetheless, I’m definitely happy I found it
and I’ll be book-marking and checking back often!
Howdy just wanted to give you a quick heads up. The text in your content seem to
be running off the screen in Internet explorer. I’m not sure if this is a
formatting issue or something to do with internet browser compatibility but I figured I’d post to let you know.
The style and design look great though! Hope
you get the issue resolved soon. Many thanks
Ahaa, its good conversation regarding this paragraph here at this website, I have
read all that, so at this time me also commenting
at this place.
Nice blog here! Also your site loads up very fast!
What web host are you using? Can I get your affiliate link to your host?
I wish my web site loaded up as fast as yours lol
I am regular reader, how are you everybody? This piece of writing posted at this site is in fact good.
Paragraph writing is also a fun, if you be acquainted with then you
can write or else it is difficult to write.
Hello there, I do think your web site could be having browser compatibility
problems. When I take a look at your blog in Safari, it looks fine but
when opening in Internet Explorer, it’s got some overlapping
issues. I merely wanted to provide you with a quick heads up!
Aside from that, excellent site!
This is very interesting, You are a very skilled blogger.
I’ve joined your feed and look forward to seeking more of your excellent post.
Also, I’ve shared your web site in my social
networks!
Hello there! I could have sworn I’ve been to this website before but after reading through some
of the post I realized it’s new to me. Anyways, I’m definitely
happy I found it and I’ll be book-marking and checking back frequently!
Wow, superb blog layout! How long have you been blogging for?
you made blogging look easy. The overall look of your
web site is excellent, as well as the content!
Hello! Do you use Twitter? I’d like to follow you if that would
be okay. I’m undoubtedly enjoying your blog and look forward to new
posts.
Hey I know this is off topic but I was wondering if you knew of any widgets I could add
to my blog that automatically tweet my newest twitter updates.
I’ve been looking for a plug-in like this for quite some time and was hoping maybe you would have some experience with something like this.
Please let me know if you run into anything. I truly enjoy reading your blog and
I look forward to your new updates.
Wow, awesome blog layout! How long have you been blogging for?
you made blogging look easy. The overall
look of your website is magnificent, let alone the content!
This article offers clear idea for the new users of blogging,
that truly how to do blogging.
Excellent, what a web site it is! This webpage provides helpful data to us, keep it up.
Way cool! Some extremely valid points! I appreciate you writing
this write-up plus the rest of the site is really good.
I do not even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post was great.
I don’t know who you are but definitely you’re going to a famous blogger if you aren’t already 😉 Cheers!
Thanks for finally writing about > From Dropping Out of School
To Owning Supermarkets Worth Billions – Tommy Makgatho – < Loved it!
Hi there it’s me, I am also visiting this site daily, this
website is genuinely fastidious and the visitors are in fact
sharing nice thoughts.
Thanks for every other wonderful article. Where else could
anybody get that kind of info in such a perfect method of writing?
I’ve a presentation next week, and I’m at the search for such info.
Hi to every one, the contents existing at this site are really awesome
for people knowledge, well, keep up the nice work fellows.
Awesome blog! Do you have any helpful hints for aspiring writers?
I’m hoping to start my own website soon but I’m a little lost on everything.
Would you recommend starting with a free platform like WordPress or go for a
paid option? There are so many choices out there that I’m totally
confused .. Any tips? Kudos!
I read this article fully concerning the resemblance
of latest and previous technologies, it’s amazing
article.
Write more, thats all I have to say. Literally, it seems as though you relied on the video to make your
point. You obviously know what youre talking
about, why waste your intelligence on just posting videos to your blog when you could be giving
us something enlightening to read?
Amazing! Its actually amazing piece of writing, I have got
much clear idea about from this article.
Great article, totally what I wanted to find.
Attractive element of content. I simply stumbled upon your web site and in accession capital to claim that I acquire actually enjoyed account your blog posts.
Anyway I will be subscribing for your augment and
even I achievement you get admission to constantly
fast.
I don’t even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post was
good. I do not know who you are but definitely you are going to a famous blogger if you are not
already 😉 Cheers!
Very good info. Lucky me I came across your site by accident (stumbleupon).
I’ve bookmarked it for later!
What’s up, just wanted to mention, I enjoyed this blog post.
It was funny. Keep on posting!
This design is wicked! You definitely know how to
keep a reader amused. Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start my
own blog (well, almost…HaHa!) Fantastic job. I really enjoyed what you had to say, and more than that, how you presented
it. Too cool!
What a information of un-ambiguity and preserveness of
valuable know-how on the topic of unexpected emotions.
Pretty section of content. I just stumbled upon your blog and in accession capital to
assert that I get actually enjoyed account your blog posts.
Anyway I’ll be subscribing to your feeds and even I achievement you access consistently
fast.
Hello, i believe that i noticed you visited my site thus i got here to return the
want?.I’m trying to find things to improve my web site!I suppose its ok to use some of your ideas!!
Hi, I do think this is an excellent site. I stumbledupon it 😉 I am going to come back once again since I saved as a favorite it.
Money and freedom is the best way to change, may
you be rich and continue to guide other people.
Howdy! Quick question that’s completely off topic.
Do you know how to make your site mobile friendly? My site looks weird when viewing from my iphone.
I’m trying to find a template or plugin that might
be able to fix this problem. If you have any suggestions, please share.
Thanks!
Do you mind if I quote a few of your posts as long as I provide credit and sources back to your site?
My website is in the exact same area of interest
as yours and my visitors would certainly benefit from some of the information you present
here. Please let me know if this okay with you. Thank you!
Yes! Finally something about website.
Hello I am so delighted I found your weblog, I
really found you by error, while I was researching on Askjeeve
for something else, Nonetheless I am here now and would just like to say many thanks for a remarkable
post and a all round enjoyable blog (I also love the theme/design), I don’t have time
to browse it all at the moment but I have bookmarked
it and also added in your RSS feeds, so when I have time I will be
back to read more, Please do keep up the excellent job.
Whoa! This blog looks exactly like my old one! It’s on a completely different topic
but it has pretty much the same page layout and design. Great choice of
colors!
Fantastic beat ! I wish to apprentice while you amend your web
site, how can i subscribe for a blog web site?
The account aided me a acceptable deal. I had been tiny bit acquainted of this your broadcast
provided bright clear concept
Asking questions are in fact fastidious thing if you are not understanding something totally, except this post provides fastidious
understanding yet.
Right now it sounds like Expression Engine is the best blogging platform
out there right now. (from what I’ve read) Is that what you’re using on your blog?
Hi are using WordPress for your blog platform? I’m new to the blog world
but I’m trying to get started and set up my own. Do you require any html coding knowledge
to make your own blog? Any help would be greatly appreciated!
전신스타킹
I’m gone to inform my little brother, that he should also go to see this weblog on regular basis
to take updated from hottest news update.
my web blog vpn coupon code 2024
Everyone loves what you guys are up too. This sort of clever work
and coverage! Keep up the fantastic works guys I’ve incorporated you guys to my own blogroll.
My blog; vpn coupon code 2024
I simply couldn’t go away your web site prior to suggesting that I really enjoyed the standard information a person provide in your guests?
Is going to be again incessantly to inspect new posts
Feel free to visit my web page: vpn special coupon code 2024
Thanks for finally talking about > From Dropping Out of School To Owning Supermarkets Worth Billions – Tommy Makgatho – vpn special coupon code 2024