06 Feb 2017

 It is not always smooth sailing in business and sometimes the challenges are overwhelming, but it is always how determined one is that helps to prosper.

That is certainly the case for 32 year-old entrepreneur Mr Innocent Bante who is a Limkokwing University graduate in Graphic Design.

Mr Bante, who is from Mapoka in the North East district told BOPA in an interview that he started Digitech in his room in Kasane as unemployment was straining him and could not afford to take care of himself.

Upon seeing a niche in designing, printing and photocopying, he decided to expand his business and apply for a Youth Development Fund (YDF) in 2013.

“The grant was approved towards the end of 2014 and I started operating in February 2015. I was given a P100 000 to start my business, which deals with designing car stickers, t-shirts, brochures, business cards and also photocopying and printing,” he noted.

He had to work hard to sustain his business and had he not been determined, he would have closed shop each time challenges approached.

Mr Bante faces challenges in his business such as shortage of equipment, especially the printing machine for A2 and A1 papers for posters.

He has realised that people in Chobe prefer advertising in bigger posters, so he is always forced to design and send to Gaborone and Francistown for them to print and this result in extra costs for his business, which could be easily avoided if he had his own.

Despite the market being responsive, he wishes that bigger companies could show support to the smaller companies, especially the tourism sector as most of them rather design and print outside Kasane, ditching his company.

He also emphasised that they need support from government departments, some of which are taking business to Gaborone and Francistown, leaving his company close by.

“Small companies however do try to support one another as they understand the struggle of being an underdog. We have a few tour operators who have come to us for marketing materials,” he said.

Mr Bante is also disadvantaged by location as his office is located far from popular malls where there is a lot of activity and movement.

Office rentals in these malls are particularly high and as such, finding walk-in customers has been a challenge and he hopes to one day own a permanent warehouse, where he will be able to do all his work hopefully closer to his customers.

“This space that we are operating in is not even permanent, the contract we have with the council will be coming to an end in February 2017, so if they do not renew it for us it will mean looking for new space, which is hard to find in Kasane,” he said.

Despite these challenges, he has managed to employ two young women in his business and with the salary they get, they are able to make a living for themselves.

He is also able to take care of his family with profits from his business, as well as investing in more equipment to grow the business. ENDS