Thu Feb 28 11:11:00 UTC 2019
Sammy Mhaule got his first taste of entrepreneurship as a 14 year old when he sold ice cream on the streets of Tembisa. Today he supplies sparkling juice to Checkers Hyper in Gauteng and Checkers in the Free State, but the journey from ice cream peddler to business owner hasn't always been smooth sailing.
- Sammy Mhaule, 39-year-old, with formal qualifications as a mechanical engineer and marketer
The idea for his products came from an opportunity to capitalise on South Africa hosting the 2010 Soccer World Cup by supplying non-sparkling juice to hotels.
- Sammy Mhaule
His light-bulb moment came one day as he was walking down a drinks isle and realised there weren’t many sparkling juices in which at least two flavours were blended. He incubated this idea for 18 months, a period in which he also enrolled in a supplier development programme.
In 2017 he was approached by Celia Theron, a former divisional buyer for the Shoprite Group, who had heard of his product and took a keen interest in it. In the same year Theron joined Skyrule Drinks as its National Key Account.
Within a year of that initial contact his drinks were available in Checkers Hyper stores in Gauteng. They are also available in Checkers stores in the Free State and they now have their sights set on supplying to the Eastern Cape in the near future.
Skyrule Drinks is based in Kempton Park. It was important for Mhaule to locate his business close to the community that nurtured him and today he employs ten people from the area. He describes the last year as tough, but very rewarding: Skyrule Drinks was among the top 20 at the 2018 South African Small Business Awards.
For Mhaule the best part of being an entrepreneur is the knowledge that his destiny is in his own hands.
- Sammy Mhaule
In 10 years’ time, Mhaule hopes to own three manufacturing plants in three provinces.
- Sammy Mhaule