Young black woman takes built industry by storm

By Philemon Modise
At the tender age of 23 year, a Soweto lass Mosa Moeketsi is the brain behind an award winning construction company, a business that she has been operating for six years now. How this bubbly youngster started her own business and becoming successful at it?
At first Moeketsi did not set out to become an entrepreneur it was by sheer chance that she went into business, initiallyshe had intentions to go to university after matric, however she met with technical challenges, her schooling was done via British system way and at least three universities she sought to register at, requiredher to do a bridging course, something that she was not prepared to do. After ambitions of pursuing her studies hit a snag. Mosa decided to join her mother’s water reticulation company however she soon became unemployed as the company had to close down.  Faced with a bleak future, she decided that it was time to venture forthwith her own business. When Moeketsi, then 18 years, told many that she harboured intentions of  starting her own construction company,  many frowned to the idea as just another overly ambitious talk but she proved otherwise as the business is bringing home an annual turnover in excess of R1 million .

What gave her more courage was the fact that she wrote proposals that won contracts while working for her mother’s company,“I told myself that if I can do it with the previous company then I can do it for myself”. With that mind-set, Tshimo Ya Tlhago a construction company was initiated in 2007 with just R1000 in her pockets.Armed with vision, the lack of finance was not going todeter her,moreso she did not even consider sourcing any funding instead her focus was  getting the  business off the ground. It was not long that her first contract came along, a project worth R30 000 to fix about 120 RDp houses at Bophelong a township in the Vaal area.
 Fruits of hard work started paying off, the same year she started operating she scooped the 2007 Alexandra Business of the Year Award an award by The BusinessPlace in conjunctionwith Standard Bank. The following year Raizcorp a business incubator offered to mentor her for three years and in 2009 after meeting the Burundian ambassador in Cape Town her company got its first international contract worth R1.6 million to train Burundians how to use brick making machines.

Moeketsi’s business road was not an easy one. “I had to double my efforts to prove that I got what it takes to deliver despite my age. At first, age became a hindrance as the business community was not taking meserious including my employees. I had to put my foot down to make things happen and more so I became hands-on to prove that I can do it, at construction sites I had to carry a 50 kg of cement to show that I can do it”.

Although Moeketsi is passionate and driven to make things happen, she does not take all the credit. She attributes her success to the mentorship programme she received in 2008 from Raizcorp, an established business incubator founded by Allon Raiz. The programme incubated her for three years arming her with business related skills and among others provided her with an office space, telephone, computer and business secretarial services. She is grateful for the invaluable help she received from Raizcorp and even today when in need of any business assistance, she still enlists help from Raiz.
Mosa enthuse in an interview with Transform SA that a business should not be only about empowering oneself but the community around you, especially young people as they are tomorrow’s leaders.  In an effort to see to it that youth are geared up to meet the challenges of the day , Moeketsi has dedicated time to offer motivation talks in schools and there is a project in pipeline to build a career guidance centre in Soweto. The centre she envisage to build will consist a restaurant where employment would be created , career guidance centre and a skills development facility where the focus would be on empowering young on construction skills.
 On inspiring entrepreneurs, “Anyone wanting to starttheir own business can do so, however they should be prepared to be fully committed. Business poses challenges and it is not easy going however if you keep going despite all challenges, one is certain to emerge victorious. 

On the growth of business, Moeketsi said her future goals is  to grow a flourishing businessin Africa and  set her eyes on listing on Altx, the JSE’s  alternative stock exchange for small and medium sized  but high growth companies. All this are envisaged to be achieved within 10 years and having achieved her three-year goals of reaching a R1 million turnover,getting an office space and having permanent employees when she started, it looks like succeeding in achieving her goals is inevitable for Moeketsi.