By: Keletso Mkhwanazi .
Delivery Ka Speed, an innovative business that brings food delivery to townships and was developed during the lockdown, has grown from the dusty roads of Hammanskraal, north of Pretoria, to now serving three provinces. While the company’s founder, Godiragetse Mogajane, was born and raised in the township, he had the opportunity to attend university. When he returned to his hometown and discovered that the services they were getting familiar with in the suburbs were no longer available, he realised that townships lacked innovative delivery services.“Every time I returned home, I saw my former classmates sitting on the corners, doing nothing, and some of them even called me a big man, wanting to wash my car.
That for me was a problem because even when I wanted to go back home, I would think about them and end up not going because unemployment is real and their situation really broke my heart,” he told Vutivi News. All he could think about was how he could help them, and decided the youth in townships needed opportunities on the ground, not in the city, “I wanted to be able to go to my town and be able to order food like I do when I’m in Sandton… this business idea was the one stone that killed two birds [by] creating employment in the townships as well as convenience in the townships,” Mogajane said.
Delivery Ka Speed, which uses scooters to deliver food, is available in Gauteng, the North West, and Limpopo. It also includes a web version buying option for people who have not yet downloaded the app, with the best payment choices including Apple Pay and Android payment methods. Monthly subscriptions are also available on the app. The company employs around 20 people at the office and has more than 100 delivery drivers. “All our riders are being empowered. They are all riding scooters, which they rent to own. This means that after 18 months or so, they own the asset, which is the type of employment that we want to create in townships,” he said.
Mogajane emphasised that they hired locals in all areas where they operated. “Since it’s difficult to rob someone you grew up with just because they’re on a scooter, that strategy we’ve been using in all the areas and we’ve seen that over the two years, it has helped us in safeguarding our business,” he explained. Local spazas, including traditional food vendors, and big restaurants were registered on the app. He said that when they started the business, they initially used WhatsApp to communicate with people ordering food.
But as they grew, they designed the app and steadily improved its functioning, including features such as landmarks, which allowed users to enter their full location and select among unique objects such as trees, large buildings, or schools. Mogajane intends to go national by the end of 2024. He has already secured a partnership with Telkom, which he says has revolutionised the business.
