There’s a big difference between talking about the township economy and actually building within it. Many people can speak about spaza shops, stokvels, and informal markets from a distance. Fewer are willing to do the real work — the work of listening, collaborating, educating, and building systems that communities can genuinely own and benefit from. Because the future of the township economy will not be unlocked through observation alone. It will be unlocked through participation….

When I was thirteen, I was already running my father’s shebeen. Looking back now, it remains the longest surviving business he ever had. And I think I understand why.It was the only business where he truly involved the family.My father spent a lot of time away working — and, of course, enjoying life too — so I had to step in early. What started as helping out gradually became full operational responsibility. At thirteen, I…

For years, we have spoken about the Township Economy as one of South Africa’s greatest untapped growth engines. But growth without capability, digital infrastructure and globally relevant skills leaves millions of young people and small businesses on the outside of the digital economy they already participate in every day. That is why I’m immensely proud of my team for securing our Cisco Networking Academy affiliation, further entrenching Finlite’s position as a fintech and digital skills…

Dangerous because it knows its worth. The moment a stokvel becomes digitally and financially literate, the entire power dynamic shifts. It no longer operates from a place of exclusion or dependence. It starts negotiating from a position of knowledge, structure, and collective strength. And that changes everything. The Rise of the Informed Collective For decades, stokvels have been treated as informal savings clubs — useful, but limited. That view is outdated. Today’s stokvel is evolving…

If you are serious about mass consumer adoption — especially in underserved communities — then it’s worth being blunt: If your strategy is still centred around traditional apps, email campaigns, and website funnels, you are solving for the wrong environment. Not because those tools don’t work — they do. But they don’t work at scale for the realities most people live in. The Reality on the Ground In many communities, the barriers are not ambition…