Twin Twice Tissues, a Greytown-based tissue manufacturing company, has bounced back from devastating losses suffered during the 2022 KwaZulu-Natal floods due to crucial support from several government initiatives and enterprise development programmes.
Following the devastating floods, the Department of Small Business Development and its agency Small Enterprise Development Agency (Seda) moved swiftly to bring relief to flood-affected small businesses.
At the time Small Business Development Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams announced a R50 million assistance package for distressed small businesses.
Through the aid scheme, Twin Twice Tissues, which is 100% black-owned, received R800 000 in raw materials to replace damaged stock. These included jumbo roll reels, which are used to make toilet paper.
Thabiso Mncwabe, the company’s founder and chief executive, is grateful for the government support that has allowed the business to stay open.
“Seda helped us a lot. They bought us raw materials when we suffered from the floods. We lost a lot of material, and their support came at a critical time,” Mncwabe said.
Founded in 2015, Twin Twice Tissues started with just three employees but now employs 21. While the company is headquartered in Greytown, it has expanded operations with satellite offices in Pietermaritzburg and Durban to meet increasing demand.
“We started in Greytown because that’s where our roots are. Initially, we supplied local stores, schools, and private companies. As demand grew in Pietermaritzburg, we realised we needed to expand operations,” he recalls.
The company eventually opened a branch in Pietermaritzburg to improve logistics and reach more customers in Durban, where it was securing multiple contracts.
“At the time, we were supplying a number of Spar stores and other retailers, but reaching our customers was becoming a logistical nightmare. Expanding allowed us to serve our clients more efficiently,” Mncwabe said.
In 2017, Mncwabe applied to the SAB Foundation Tholoana Enterprise Programme to expand his business. “I received business skills development, mentorship, and R200 000 in funding, which helped us buy a business vehicle for deliveries. Later, I secured a R1.1 million loan to buy additional machinery and opened a second manufacturing factory in Pietermaritzburg.”
In 2023/24, the business placed second in the KwaZulu-Natal Annual BEE Conference and Business Awards for the best youth-owned and managed business.
As part of its commitment to job creation, the company prioritises hiring young women. “Young women tend to grasp the work better than men,” he said.
Today, the KwaZulu-Natal departments of Economic Development and Environmental Affairs, Agriculture and Rural Development, and Seda train aspiring toilet tissue makers throughout the province.
For more information about Seda, call 0860 663 7867 email info@seda.org.za or log on to www.seda.org.za
To get in touch with the KZN Department of Economic Development and Environmental Affairs log onto
www.kznedtea.gov.za or call 033 264 2500
Send an email to sabfoundation@za.ab-inbev.com for more information on the SAB Foundation.
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