At Taking Care of Business (TCB), we are proud to be one of South Africa’s leading contributors to the circular economy. Formerly known as The Clothing Bank, we have built a model that transforms retail waste into opportunity through our three core programmes: Resell, Repair, and Remake.
Each programme helps unemployed South Africans build small, informal trading businesses using donated retail waste that would otherwise have ended up in landfill.
Since we opened our doors in 2010, more than 22.9 million items have been diverted from landfill, and over R564 million in profits have been generated by small businesses using these items.
Our holistic two-year programmes train unemployed South Africans to become self-employed. Participants receive business, life, computer, and financial skills training, along with counselling and mentorship to support their personal and professional growth. Within their first month, every participant starts their own business and begins earning an income.
Repairing, reselling, and remaking for a sustainable future
Every year, on 14 October, National eWaste Day, we celebrate the achievements of our Repair programme. In this programme, participants, mostly men, are taught to repair damaged appliances for resale and to resell refurbished cell phones and other mechanical items that would have been thrown away.
This past year alone, our Repair programme processed over 172 tons of potential e-waste. Most of these items were repaired and repurposed, preventing them from ending up in landfill. It is a real victory for e-waste management.
Our Resell and Remake programmes also make a significant contribution to South Africa’s circular economy. In the Resell programme, unemployed mothers debrand and resell donated clothing and homeware, keeping thousands of unsold or returned items out of landfills. In the Remake programme, seamstresses are trained to run viable businesses using donated fabrics and textiles.
Globally, fast fashion has become one of the largest contributors to landfill waste, with over 100 billion garments manufactured every year, many of which are never sold and end up being destroyed. Through our programmes, we are helping turn this global problem into local opportunity.
At TCB, we add value by reusing, repairing, refurbishing, and repurposing supply chain waste. What we absolutely cannot use is recycled. This creates a mutually beneficial system where waste is transformed into economic value while reducing pressure on natural resources.
We collect, debrand, and redistribute this excess stock at no additional cost to our supply partners. These donated items have a direct social impact by helping unemployed South Africans move from survival to self-employment and eventually to financial independence.
Measuring our impact
Here’s what the past financial year (1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025) looked like for us:
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2.08 million “waste” items donated to our programmes
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688 unemployed people recruited
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1,020 participants currently active in our two-year programmes
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1,297 programme graduates still accessing and selling stock
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R49.9 million in estimated profits made by participants and graduates
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172 tons of e-waste received and repurposed
We invite you to join us in extending the life of valuable materials. Please consider donating your old appliances, clothing, or unused fabric to TCB. Together, we can keep waste out of landfills and create opportunities that restore dignity and independence.
We have offices in Cape Town, Paarl, Midrand, East London, and Durban, and every donation helps us take care of both people and the planet.