Course description

The retail industry will play a crucial role operationalising  plans to replace imports and localisation to create jobs and drive economic development. The industry is at the cold face of customer service therefore there is economic rationale for interventions to support of Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises (SMMEs). This lies in market and institutional failures that bias the size distribution of firms, rather than on any inherent economic benefits provided by small firms.

The role of governments is mainly to provide an enabling business environment that opens access is sale to business or institutional customers. The advent of Artificial Intelligence and online sales are growing at fast pace thereby creating vast opportunities in retail such as the personal shopper programmes. Retails offers market access to SMMEs that do not have a virtual or physical market platform for selling. The rise of e-commerce has created in some instances a retail opportunity for imports thereby being detrimental for local manufactures. This programme seeks to address these by leveraging on partnerships.

The retail industry is encouraged to partner with the state to determine where the opportunities exist to advance skills development, job creation and poverty alleviation

Programme Benefits

• Access to Skills Development Training Programmes
• Access to Supplier and Enterprise Development Programme
• Job Placement Opportunities