Family Invests In Lucrative Hotel Business
Lesedi Mkhutshwa | Monday June 10, 2019 13:23
One of the family members, Bogadi Nkokwena, told Business Monitor that their hotel provides accommodation to tourists from as far as Europe, United States (US) and other parts of the world.
She said that they started operating the family business, Nkanga Hotel, in March 2010 as part of their family future financial planning.
As a guesthouse by then they only had five rooms, which they later increased to nine due to the high demand for accommodation by both local and international tourists.
Nkokwena said that in 2017, they asked for financial assistance from Citizen Entrepreneurial Development Agency (CEDA), which injected a P2 million loan into the business.
Local Enterprise Authority (LEA) also played a huge role in assisting them to get funding from CEDA.
“The process of approving the loan took three months because our business plan was viable, which helped to speed up the process of getting the loan,” she said.
As the demand increased they increased the rooms to 21 and built a conference room, which is still under construction.
The young entrepreneur said that they decided to throw in a conference room after some of their guests brought that suggestion to the attention of the hotel management.
They also gave their hotel an African touch by erecting a thatch in order to give tourists an incredible experience, especially those looking to embrace a new or existing culture.
Nkokwena said that they have employed 12 young Batswana on a permanent basis adding that the number of employees would increase once the construction of the conference room is completed.
She also said that they offer affordable prices to locals adding that the chalet only costs P950, family room is P1,050 while a double room costs P850 per room.
Nkokwena said that it was a deliberate decision to keep their rooms affordable so that they can also attract Batswana who feel that accommodation prices are high to the heart of the country’s tourism industry.
“We want Batswana to start appreciating their natural resources and wildlife. Batswana should also take advantage of tourism by tapping into the profit-making tourism industry,” she said.
She advised Batswana to ask for help from CEDA in order to benefit from the services that CEDA offers.