Every staff member is happy mainly because they know how tough it is out there with nearly half the population unemployed. If you are working over time then the business is growing and guaranteeing your employment.
Today is Heritage Day in South Africa and for some of us this is just another work day because we have deadlines to meet. The 3 containers that were delayed due to the snowfall over the weekend arrived last night and had to be off loaded ,checked and counted against the packing lists. When you run your own business every day of the week is a work day and is the sacrifices you gladly accept being your own boss. The services your business offers is what governs your work week.
These containers are already late and the stock needs to be picked and delivered before the 27th of this month. he time line has not changed as this is the turnover that pays the bills next month and we understand our clients situation. The hope is their financial situation does improve and with each month passing they become stronger.
Our side of the business is strong and there is no worries on that front and I am actually looking forward to each month that passes as everything is running so smoothly. I think this is what happens when you get the right balance between having the right staff and the right service providers servicing your business. If everyone is doing their jobs then there is no problem besides the stress of achieving tight deadlines.
Mistakes cost us money so once orders have been picked there are more checks in place making sure they are double checked and a final check when the items are labelled. Spending an extra hour or wo knowing the order is right is crucial because any shortages means the order is incomplete and the invoices will not be signed off resulting in the deadline being missed.
The other good news is the flooring I ordered has arrived and this will be laid later this week. This is getting the designated area ready in preparation for an audit for a new client which once ready we will call them in. This is exciting considering how quickly the business is growing knowing there are still other revenue streams that need to be added.
We have an Amazon conference coming up shortly which will answer many questions why they have been so slow to get going. They are here in name, but haven't started like they should have and we are all waiting for their next move. The competition they have here could be a major factor due to the competitor being established and running for 13 years already. We looked at Amazon's prices and the bulk of their products which are mainly imported are not competitive. We shall see how they can compete as this we feel is a 50/50 and not guaranteed.