From one combi to multi-million empire

The Monitor: What does the Presidential Award for Meritorious Service mean to you?
AT&T: It means that my efforts (from a business & social perspective) together with my wife, Talita and employees of AT&T Monnakgotla Group of Companies are recognised by Batswana, even though our company is just 13 years old.
The Monitor: How did you get to know about the nominations?
AT&T: Around April 2012, someone from the Ministry of Trade and Industry called me to fill in a nomination form, which I did. He informed me that the form will undergo several stages of consideration alongside other nominations, and that once I am successful, I will be informed of the outcome. Sometime in August 2012, a letter from the Office of the President brought the good news.
The Monitor: Is this award something you have been dreaming of attaining?
AT&T:  Yes. But I never knew how a person becomes eligible for selection until this April.
The Monitor: I think you are one of the youngest people to receive this award, did you check the age of other recipients of this award?
AT&T: At 42, I think I must be the first person to get the Award of Meritorious Service. This is based on the point that it must be a third level honour after Naledi ya Botswana and Order of Honour Awards that have been given to highly prominent people. With respect to the age of other recipients, I learned of their ages a day before the award after we were given a booklet showing their personal profiles during a rehearsal session at the GICC.
The Monitor: You are described as a self-made man. Was there a time when you were a poor man? Were your parents poor?
AT&T: My parents were middle income earners. I grew up at plot 948 African Mall since 1973 in the house that Yarona Fm started its business in 1998. The same house that I turned into an office for my companies. Yes, one is right to say I am a self-made man, of course with my wife, Talita.
The Monitor: What is the annual turnover of your business operations?
AT&T: It's a couple of million Pula. Some of this information is sensitive.
The Monitor: So I can proudly say about you, 'here is a Botswana multi-millionaire?'
AT&T:  A Pula millionaire in assets, Yes.
The Monitor:  Your success story actually dates back to very recent times, 1999. That's when you owned your first minibus with your wife. How did you get to own that first combi?
AT&T: We started the business as a pilot project on the Gaborone-Phakalane route. We had some substantial personal savings that we wanted to invest in a cash business, then we decided to buy a second hand round-face Toyota Hi-Ace combi from Japan via the internet. Actually, a lot of people discouraged us from buying the round-face since it did not have a lot of spare parts in the market, but we took the gamble and maybe we were one of the first people to own that type of combi. So our gamble paid off as nowadays the round face is the king of the taxi/combi rank.
The Monitor: Were you the driver of the combi?
AT&T: No. Actually I do not drive any of my buses or combis. I prefer business administration duties to driving.
The Monitor:  Did you buy more combis later?
AT&T:  Yes. Most of my 13 to 22 seaters operate in the Travel & Tours business for private hire.
The Monitor:  So you are no longer in the combi business?
AT&T:  No, I do not operate a commuter combi service since 2001 when I sold the combi to one local business person.
The Monitor: How would you sum up your wifes role in your empire?
AT&T: Talita is very active in the business. Naturally she likes business operations; preparing schedules for buses, drivers, conductors, inspectors and porters. She also deals with marketing and PR (public relations) issues.
The Monitor: One famous local bus transport mogul thinks it is a mistake to have a wife as a business partner, you and Talita seems to be defying that philosophy, just what is your secret?
AT&T: The secret lies in role separation and respecting the other partner's decisions. Acceptance of mistakes made is also one strong attribute of a successful wife/husband business partnership.
The Monitor: Are your children also involved in the family businesses? How many children do you have and how old are they now?
AT&T: We have two boys aged 12 and 14 years. They are not involved with the business since they are minors but they grew up finding us active in business hence they have accepted who we are and how we manage our home. Their involvement in the business is small since they help with small clerical work like processing government travel warrants during school holidays. They earn an allowance for this small work but we do it to keep them busy and draw them into the business.
The Monitor:  How do you celebrate your good moments?
AT&T: I celebrate family and friends' birthdays on weekends. I attend family and friends' wedding celebrations. I enjoy church events on Sundays like luncheons.
The Monitor:  Your favourite place for relaxation?
AT&T: On Sunday afternoons at my beautiful house in Oodi.
The Monitor: From one combi in 1999 to a company that employs over 150 people today, would you say Botswana has been a land of endless opportunities to you?
AT&T: Yes. Business opportunities are many but the market is small hence a wide portfolio of businesses is the way to survive.
The Monitor:  From that first combi, how many businesses is AT&T running today?
AT&T:  We have six businesses;  AT&T Monnakgotla Transport, AT&T Monnakgotla Travel & Tours, AT&T Travel, AT&T Car Rentals, Afrisure Insurance Brokers & Macheng Investments.
The Monitor: Some people say the bus and taxi transport can actually bleed the owner because there is a lot of theft from workers, what has been your experience?
AT&T:  Pilferage is like a norm to current staff. It is more rampant with conductors and drivers. We now see a lot happening among accounts staff. But in all these cases, we take necessary disciplinary measures that become a bitter pill to some employees.
The Monitor: Have you ever felt like closing down shop as a result of theft by workers before?
AT&T: Yes. The travel and tours business has been much exposed to bogus fuel receipts during 2011. Drivers would claim that they were given hand-written receipts at fueling stations and thus write amounts that do not correspond to fuel (litres) filled in.
The Monitor: Estimate your loss to theft in the transport business
AT&T: The amount ranges between P500,000 and P1 million since such fraud is from year 2006 to date.
The Monitor: What is the most painful experience you ever had in this business in the last 10 years?
AT&T: Fatal bus accidents. Losing a passenger is a traumatic experience. We have had three accidents in the history of the company, where we lost lives.
The Monitor: Last year you became the first and only bus transport to sponsor women's football for a huge amount of P900,000. What inspired you to do this?
AT&T:  My wife used to be a member of Women In Sports Botswana (WASBO). Realising that women football was struggling to get national recognition, she influenced our company to sponsor this code. Moreover, at that time, we wanted to sponsor a sport code that could have an impact on the lives of Batswana and also market our company brand effectively thus women football.
The Monitor: Is this football deal100 percent money or a portion of it is in kind?
AT&T: It is 100 percent money. The deal is sponsored at P300,000 annually for three years and the money is distributed by the BFA to administration, teams welfare and league prices annually.
The Monitor: I understand AT&T Monnakgotla is also involved in many more national causes. How much do you spend to help our various communities in a year?
AT&T:  Our corporate social investment per year stands at P500,000 on average. We also do a little bit more from our personal capacities, especially at our church (ELCSA).
The Monitor: I hear you donated P50,000 to Serowe SOS last year, did they approach you for help?
AT&T: Yes they did through our marketing and PR office. This office is responsible for the corporate social investment function.
The Monitor: I am told you also donate P1,000 a month to Masiela Trust, how long has this been going on?
A T&T: The Masiela monthly donation started this year July via the GabzFm Telethon program. This is a program in which GabzFm is working with Masiela Trust Fund to raise money for orphans and our company found it necessary to make this donation that is likely to be increased upwards annually.
The Monitor: You also sit on the Masiela Trust Board, what contributions do you make for the good of the Trust?
A T&T: I am the deputy chairperson. My portfolio covers administrative duties using my professional qualifications, being a Masters in Business Administration.
The Monitor: Is Masiela Trust government or NGO (non-governmental organization)? How does it help the country?
AT&T: It is an NGO. It helps the country in covering areas and gaps that the government is not able to under what is termed orphaned and vulnerable children (OVC). Masiela sources funds from donors within and outside the country and cascades these funds to sister (smaller) organisations countrywide that take care of OVC projects.
The Monitor: You also run a travel agency. When did you venture into this business?
AT&T: We started AT&T Travel in the year 2006. It started off with four  employees. It currently employs eight people directly and around five employees in-directly (accounts department, HR & Admin).
The Monitor:  If you were to choose between the bus transport and the travel agency, which one would you ditch first?
AT&T: The travel agency. Clients take too long to pay while the company bill on tickets has to be paid without fail every 15th day of the month i.e. you need a lot of cash flow to sustain this business.
The Monitor: What inspired you to invest in the travel agency?
AT&T: We wanted to diversify our business into other modes of transport i.e. we were customarily operating on road transport and we wanted to venture into the air transport business.
The Monitor: Would you say that the idea is paying off today?
AT&T: Yes. There are times when the air transport business is lucrative (peak season) and times when its low while the road transport business is on peak.
The Monitor: Do you intend to venture into air transport operations. I hear the licences are now open?
AT&T: Yes. Being an air travel agency is giving us an insight into the business, but we might be blocked by the high investment cost of buying planes, aviation fuel and salaries.
The Monitor:  You also run a car rental company, when did this start?
AT&T: We started AT&T Car Rentals in 2009.
The company is based at the SSKIA & Francistown International Airport. We recently opened another office in Maun.
The Monitor:  Are people renting cars a lot here? Who are your target clients?
AT&T: Our car rental business is always busy. We mostly target corporates like SADC, CEDA and banks.
The Monitor: It would seem all your businesses are travel related, if it is not travel, then it is not you?
AT&T: Not really. We have gone further into insurance and real estate. We are currently planning to go into other businesses.
The Monitor: Your Botswana-Namibia routes, how popular are they?
AT&T: The route started off slow in the year 2005, but the business is picking up as Batswana are now aware of the service.
The Monitor: In a month how many Batswana travel to and from Namibia?
AT&T This is a corporate secret. But we travel on weekends only since the service is not sustainable during the week.