Daily Dosage – Gagasi FM 15th Birthday SMME Competition Winner

I dropped- out of college due to lack funds studying Video at DUT, got a job as a waiter at wimpy then moved towards coffee looking for a job as a barista (after loving a particular cafe I use to hang out at for wifi after school).  

Being barista taught me a lot, I met a lot of different people, from black boys who were from Chesterville, eMlazi (like me) to huge company CEO’s, business owners who were white living in Mhlanga etc. just stopping buy for a coffee every morning. Coffee really exposed me to the possibilities of life and I aspired to have my own space, which 3 years later I saved up enough and bought a rundown café around Umgeni which I called Daily Dosage.

It really become hard to start as I was managing another popular coffee shop to make ends meet then and the owner hated the idea that I was starting my own café when word slipped out and others told her of my missions. She really made my life difficult, started minimizing my pay and just fighting every small thing I did.  On the first day of opening my spot I was dragged to a caught case by some other gents who said I used their brand name for my café. Having no money for lawyers, being 25 and from eMlazi at that time really made my new start hard, thought I’d have to close, thought I’d never win against white guys who had money. And because it just came from jealousy their case didn’t stand in court.

Today we are 2 years old as Daily Dosage, God comes through in ways I can’t explain for our dreams, but pushing with all I have can get scary especially through COVID and now having no savings under the business. I have been looking to double up by getting a job on the side again but all café owners around Durban know me and won’t hire me because I am seen as competition (and bumping into them around Durban, I know they hope i don’t survive from the comments i get & seeing as some have closed shop).

It’s difficult being a 27year old black café owner form eMlazi competing against long standing brands and people who have back up cash. So I host monthly small events for young creatives in Durban to try inject cash into the café.  Getting good stock, maintaining coffee machinery to keep me in business would really help as i look at cheaper options right now and have to hustle getting loans to get me going.

Anyone in business will know that people aren’t spending as much so what we get for the day is really low. I am the barista, the sandwich chef, the events guy and the guy who sits and stresses about keeping the lights on for this business i worked so hard to get.  Would really appreciate the donation as it will help me pay back some small loans taken during level 5, pay rent and repair some machinery that needs being serviced.