Every entrepreneur will attest that working with the wrong courier company can impact a business negatively. It can create issues such as delayed deliveries, incorrect deliveries, or even losing parcels. You may lose customers if that courier company fails to rectify the situation.
But Khaya Ngcobo set out to provide stellar customer service when he started Remit Logistics. His zeal, a mobile phone, and a car were enough resources he needed to start his own courier business. The year was 2017 when he quit his corporate job to start Remit Logistics. Five years later, his business is still going strong.
His first client was his sister, who runs a law firm. “She will hire us to drop documents at the court from her various clients across Gauteng. Later, we acquired more clients from social media, particularly from business groups. Gradually people started noticing that this company does this line of work,” Khaya told TransformSA.
In 2004, the KwaZulu-Natal-born entrepreneur graduated with a Bcom degree. The following year he was offered a job by ABSA as a Credit Analyst. His final 9 to 5 gig before taking a leap of faith was with Barclays Africa Group as their Reporting Specialist.
Covid-19 has had a severe impact on South Africa’s businesses. Today many businesses and households still have to deal with inflation, a high unemployment rate, load-shedding, and high fuel prices. Business owners like Khaya had no choice but to devise innovative ways of rebuilding their businesses post-Covid.
“I am still hands-on in the business. This is partially a choice and also a circumstance. First, when Covid hit, we were on a trajectory, and that growth slowed down due to the pandemic,” he said.
Khaya’s business focus is on smaller and medium parcels. He says Remit Logistics delivers anything that fits a half-ton, whether boxes or a couch. “Our focus is not on larger goods at this stage. We currently deliver around Gauteng, but we are exploring synergies with other business partners to help us deliver nationally.”
In South Africa, the courier business space has many players, some with even deeper pockets to market their services and cover the entire country. And things have become more challenging for small business owners like Khaya as global shipping giants like Uber are seeking a foothold in the market.
“The first challenge was getting the name out there. The marketing budget is stretched, especially when you are starting. So you need to use creative means to promote your business. Then there were challenges such as road planning. For instance, if you want to deliver a parcel in Centurion, it will be more economical to pick up a parcel in Pretoria than drive all the way to Joburg. Those are the things that you find out as you go into the business,” said Khaya,
Remit Logistics stands out because it is an African logistics business providing safe, reliable, and affordable door-to-door courier and concierge services to individuals and SMMEs. “We bring the product to the client’s doorstep,” added Khaya.
One of Khaya’s plans is to use electric cars to deliver parcels faster to clients. He believes EVs are an efficient option for the planet and business at large.
He has the following advice to aspiring entrepreneurs: “The most important thing for young entrepreneurs is to get started. If you don’t start, you will not get anywhere. If you over analyse, you’ll never get started, but you’ll have analysis paralysis. Do some research on the industry you’re interested in to see what the trends are, he concluded.