Category: 01 January 2020

Fuel for company vehicles can be one of the highest costs for business. Members can expect to pay eight cents less for petrol and twelve cents per litre more for diesel from the first week of February onwards. These estimates are liable to change by the time the Department of Energy set next month’s costs.

The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI) has launched a loyalty and rewards programme for affiliated Chambers.  MCCI members may apply for a Shell Card.  The card offers all members transactional savings at all Shell retailers, nationwide. SACCI has negotiated the benefit of:

• 20 cents per litre of petrol and
• 25c per litre of diesel

Members interested in getting Shell Cards for their vehicles should contact the Letitia Saayman at 013 243 2253 or secretary@middelburginfo.com  for more details.  Staff members of MCCI members may also participate.

Business often forgets that the answer to our problems is right in front of your eyes. Are you looking for trustworthy business leads? MCCI has a business network that is over 117 years old, and we host monthly events for our members.

Networking is a vital component for all businesses and their sales staff. It is a continuous process to raise your business’ profile in the market place or to build a mutually beneficial business relationship and business network. If you do not work on these key actions, your business will remain an unknown entity in a tough, competitive world.

Studies have shown that the big difference between average and successful leaders wasn’t their management skills, but the size of their business networks.  Successful leaders spent 40% of their time networking, compared to average leaders, who spent 11 % of their time networking.

The digital revolution has made public information no longer a guaranteed competitive advantage. Your power base lies now in private information, and personal contacts offer something unique that is not in the public domain. The release date of a new product, inside information about what service or product company is looking for gives your business the edge.

MCCI hosted a networking event, and representatives from a member company and an international corporation met, and a few months later, a partnership was announced.  Or Border Kai (East London) Chamber phoned MCCI and said a member was looking at expanding their business; the rest is as they say history.

The value of the business relationships depends upon the trustworthiness of the network you are using.  Our next networking events are the Monthly Buzz, see details on this page, and our premier event; MCCI’s Annual Business Gala.

ACD Middelburg hosted the 23 January 2020 Business Buzz. Johan Bonthuys introduced their Middelburg Branch and the services the ACD group provide. Lucky attendees received a complimentary discount voucher on vehicle services.

The next Business Buzz is held on 20 February 2020 and hosted by Isuzu Middelburg.

For more information or to host a Business Buzz, contact the Sales & Marketing Team at the Middelburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry on 013 243 2253.

What are the local communities with limited services?  The Construction Charter requires that communities with limited services benefit. MCCI has designed a project where your company can participate in for your BBBEE scorecard,

By looking at the latest STATS SA census results filtered to the local municipality level, it is to determine if households in a community have less than 65% access to piped water or if less than 85% of the households have access to electricity. If the community is categorised as a limited services community, you as a company can get bonus points when assisting these communities.

Do you need assistance on BBBEE scorecard? Need Bonus points? We can help! By helping you reach your target on BBBEE scorecard, we can help communities with limited services.  MCCI has an exceptional track record for ten-years.

Contact Middelburg Chamber today 0132432253 or email businesslink@middelburginfo.com

Let us “Calendar” your Events

Loyal Info Facebook followers of the Middelburg Tourist Information Facebook page, know that we post events from our Events Calendar.  Are you planning an event or do you have an event already planned, this is your opportunity to make sure the community knows what is going on?

The Middelburg Information Centre is currently adding the additional events on our events calendar on our website.  We want to promote the events and activities in Middelburg and the surrounding area.  The calendar is on both our websites www.middelburginfo.com and www.middelburginfo.co.za, and it is updated weekly.

The calendar will also be shared on all our Social media platforms. Middelburg is a town with many vibrant community events and functions and we want to promote these events.  Let’s make Middelburg the  “go-to town “ for people looking for something to do over the weekend. If you want us to share your events on our calendar, you can send them to info@middelburginfo.com or contact Mmabatho on 013 243m 2253.

Mines Procured R61 Billion

Hot off the Press: The latest 2020 MCCI Mine Map is immediately available.

MCCI updates the mine map, contact details with GPS coordinates, annually to facilitate smooth business interaction between the mines in the area and the general business sectors.  A digital version of the map is also available, and it offers many interactive capabilities, such as contact details, river, and road systems.

The mining industry has been a critical driving force behind the Middelburg economy and remains at the heart of economic growth and the creation of unskilled job opportunities in our area.  With the sharp rise in the world’s demand for minerals, driven mainly by India and China, the rate of expansion in mining activities over the past 10 to 15 years has been phenomenal.  According to the Mineral Council of South Africa’s 2018 report:  Coal sales in 2017  totalled R130 Billion, and only the coal industry recorded growth in employment to 82 824 people. Not only is the earning power of the employees significant, but the coal industry spent R61 Billion procuring goods and services, most of it locally.  This contributed to creating and sustaining jobs in other sectors.

The abundant coal reserves in the Highveld Region of Mpumalanga attracted many investors to the area.  Together with South Africa’s major coal-fired power stations – three of which are the biggest in the southern hemisphere in the region.  Compiling lists of up to date contacts and other reliable information can become time-consuming for businesses eager to access the opportunities.

MCCI annually verifies the information in preparation for the Mine Maps, Members interested in the information should contact Tinus van Eck at 0132432253 or marketing@middelburginfo.com.