Stitched for success: How TCB’s Remake programme transforms lives

Taking Care of Business Success Stories: Remake Programme

Neziswa Harrmans

I’m Neziswa Harrmans. I am 38 years old, and I have three kids who depend on me. My extended family depends on me as well.

Before TCB, life was not easy at all. I was depending on a business that was running at a loss. I didn’t know how to save money—I was a spender. TCB helped me a lot with learning how to save money. The Me and My Money Programme played a big role for most of us. I was blank, spending money on things I didn’t even need. Today, I know how to manage my money. I always do my journals, which include tracking my expenses and receipts.

I used to have policies that would lapse. Today, because of TCB, I always keep my things and payments up to date.

I want to say thank you to TCB for giving me this opportunity. I was living with hunger and stress, but today I can bring something to the table for my family because of TCB.

Zondani Gidi

My name is Zondani Gidi. I am 48 years old, and I have three boys.

My life was bad; I was struggling to feed or support my family. I had very little knowledge about sewing because I never went to school. TCB gave me skills and upgraded my knowledge. I was a person who had a lot of problems. TCB helped me and taught me how to release my stress. Now, I have a way to run my business.

TCB really helped me to build back my confidence. Today, I am the best mother ever to my kids and my family as well. I am a supportive, proud mother to my children because of TCB. I sew many things with my own hands because of the training I received at TCB. I have confidence in everything that I am doing.

 

Even when you have personal issues, TCB helps by providing counselling to people like me. For example, my son was addicted to drugs. I was a mother who always prayed, but I also needed counselling to help me get through.

Thank you, TCB. You have helped me a lot. Today, I can tell others about TCB because it is something I know—it is something that has helped me in so many ways.

Phathiswa Bloro

My name is Phathiswa Bloro. I am 41 years old, and I have six kids.

My life was very difficult because I had nothing. I was running at a loss and depending on my husband for everything. Even if there wasn’t an onion or stock cube, I had to ask him. Sometimes, I had to steal money from my husband so that I could support my younger sister and her child, who also depend on me. It was not easy before TCB at all. I had to protect my marriage by stealing for my younger sister because my husband wouldn’t always give me something when I asked for it.

TCB changed my life a lot because now I have my own money. Whenever I want to help my sister with anything, I can do so. At home, I can contribute as well. I have savings—all because of what I learned in the TCB programmes. I now know how to save.

Thank you, TCB, for your help. You have helped a lot of homes, including mine.

Your contribution, no matter the size, fuels our mission to empower individuals to become self-sufficient and successful business owners to build a better future for themselves and their families. Donate now.

Taking Care of Business (TCB) is a nonprofit social enterprise. We are empowering unemployed South Africans and their families to escape the cycle of poverty through small business opportunities, mostly within the circular economy.

Financial independence thanks to reselling business

Asanda Maqawa joined the TCB Resell Programme after losing her job and facing financial hardship. Through business and financial skills training, she built a small reselling business that now helps her support her children, care for her mother and regain confidence as an independent entrepreneur.

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