SOWETAN

Far too often, the news cycle is flooded with stories of service delivery failure, crime and corruption, and despair from unemployment brought by closing businesses and failing healthcare.

These stories, important as they are, make us forget that there is balance to life with equally compelling news about business successes and the human inspiration behind them.

The story of Tlangelani Pearl Mamba, a roadside atchar seller who taught herself skills that secured her a job as a car sales executive in Gauteng, is one such reminder.

The 38-year-old from Thulamahashi in Mpumalanga spends her weekdays selling vehicles at a dealership in Boksburg and her weekends selling homemade atchar at Kyalami Corner. Her journey began at the most difficult period in her life, including losing the grandmother who raised her.

Despite many setbacks, including losing her possessions and falling into depression, Mamba never lost hope, and her courage and resilience got her back up chasing her dream.

When she got her break to work as a car salesperson at a dealership, she pleaded with her new employers to allow her to continue with her weekend side hustle of selling atchar, and they agreed. Her story provides a lesson not only in overcoming difficulty but also in building multiple income streams to survive in this economy.

Mamba’s business acumen is rooted in informal trading, a sector of the economy that has sustained livelihoods for decades without support and recognition. Research conducted in economies of similar scale to SA has demonstrated that the informal economy has the potential to create jobs at a higher rate than the formal economy.

There are many stories yet to be told about entrepreneurs, pathfinders and hustlers like Mamba who are prepared to navigate the system despite challenges and are ready to create jobs and make a living.

They can be found in SA’s townships where they are running tuck shops or vehicle repair workshops, selling clothes, organising stokvels and selling fruit and vegetables. What these entrepreneurs lack is access to markets and an opportunity to scale their businesses to new heights.

With the high levels of unemployment, especially among the youth, the lesson to be learnt from Mamba’s story is that being armed with hope and courage has its rewards.

But more importantly, it is that informal side hustles cannot be ignored because they are where skills are sharpened, business foundations are laid, and hope is transformed into making money to survive.