Partner Spotlight: iShipa Lam' South Africa

“Ever since I was a kid, growing up in Soweto, I knew I wanted more than what I could see and I believed in myself. When I resigned from my corporate job in 2018, at the top of my career, it was the scariest thing I could have done. I jumped into a world of the unknown, the uncertain and with no guarantees, in pursuit of the better world I believed in. I've done many businesses since then, with my husband, and lost so much. But in the process, I learnt a lot and this has made me the woman, and business woman that I am today.” - Busisiwe Nkosi, owner iShipa Lam’ 

During South Africa’s COVID lockdowns, Busi Nkosi and her husband observed two conquering problems in their township community: 1) malls were flooded with people because online grocery ordering was unfamiliar and untrusted; and 2) unemployment was rising as businesses were shutting down. 

To address these challenges, Busi and her husband launched iShipa Lam’ in May 2021  with a mission to make life easier for South African households to buy their groceries. The business operates a sales agent model recruiting and supporting entrepreneurs to run their own micro-businesses selling high-quality meat to households. Agents are responsible for recruiting and serving their own customers, while iShipa Lam’ handles order fulfilment and provides each of them with  an online shop and marketing materials. .

Boost is a proud partner to Busi and the iShipa Lam’ network of entrepreneurs. We provide them with access to high-quality stock, seamless digital ordering and convenient delivery services. 

Today iShipa Lam’ has grown to include five full-time staff supporting 18 agent entrepreneurs. Together, they serve township communities and suburbs around Johannesburg including Soweto, Roodepoort and Southgate.

Busi’s drive comes from her desire to provide her two beautiful girls the kind of life that she only dreamed of. Her goal is to make iShipa Lam’ a household name across all of South Africa.