Living modestly and within his means is what Pumelele Balfour attributes the success of his businesses to, one of which he has run from as early as 1994.
Balfour was one of the first black entrepreneurs to venture into franchising when he took over the Ultra City Shell in Mthatha in 1994.
The business is still fully operational and has branched out into an additional two – Shell Stigo service station in Mthatha and the Kei Bridge Ultra City on the N2.
Balfour said when he bought the Kei Bridge Ultra City five years ago, it had gone under and he had to acquire a loan from the Masisizane Fund to turn it around.
The businessman, who received a visit from the funding organisation on Wednesday, said he was pleased to be paying off his loan of R5m in December without defaulting on a single payment.
“Patience is a virtue when you are running a business. You cannot be excited when you see money coming in, you need to remember your operational costs need to be covered, pay salaries, rent and debt long before you start seeing profits.
“What has helped my business grow is the basics of a business – customer service.
“That is the one thing staff needs to be trained on, because that is what clients come to give you business for, as well as clean toilets...