Animal Feeds
If you reside in an area where livestock farming is an important activity, you could consider feed processing as a business.  You could supply feed for chickens, pigs, sheep, goats and cows. The feed manufactured contains supplements that can improve the general condition of the livestock. It is an easy production system where the basic task involves mixing all the different ingredients together.

Atchar Production
Atchar is a product consumed by most households on a daily basis and is easy to produce, even in your own kitchen. This is an affordable business to set up.  You can earn a reasonable income if you work hard at this business.

Beer Brewing
Clear beer can be brewed on a small scale using low cost equipment and a simple brewing technique.  It can be a profitable business. Our beer brewing equipment has been designed for home brewed production and it allows for hygienic and cost effective production.

Block Making
Block making is a good business opportunity in both urban and rural areas.  Clients would be mainly building contractors and the many people constantly upgrading their homes. Block making is a popular choice for community based projects.

Brick Making
Bricks are used all over the country on a daily basis.  Stock bricks are used to build houses, while paving bricks can be used to pave pathways, driveways, etc.  If you already have your own paving business, it will help to increase the profitability of your business if you start manufacturing your own bricks. It would be helpful if you could secure a contract to supply bricks to a building contractor.

Bread Baking
Most households consume bread on a daily basis.  With basic skills and ATA equipment, you could be the supplier of fresh bread in your neighbourhood. Good positioning is important so that customers can reach you easily.  A delivery vehicle for door-to-door delivery would also be a good investment.

 

Candle Making
Candle making can be profitable but generally only in rural areas where electricity is not available. The production process is simple and the set-up costs are reasonable.  Ideal clients would be rural spaza shops. In urban areas, decorative candles for weddings, birthdays, etc. are popular.  These are also easy to produce and caterers, florists and churches could be good clients.

Chip Production
If you stay close to an institution like a school, hospital, sport stadium, etc. chip production could be a good business for you.  You can produce fresh chips daily in you own kitchen or on a part-time basis to increase your income. Chip production has large profit margins and requires a low capital input.  Selling 50 packets a day will make a huge difference to your pocket.

Dairy Products
Dairy products are consumed daily in most households.  This business is suitable for people who have their own cows, as processing your own milk will increase the profitability of producing dairy products. As dairy products have a limited shelf life, you must be close enough to a town, village, local market place, etc. where you can sell your products on a daily basis.

Domestic Chemical Production
Domestic chemicals are used almost daily in nearly every household.  They are simple to manufacture on a small or large scale and the profit margins are high.

 

Fence Making
Fencing is a huge business and a great micro-manufacturing opportunity, provided you have a reliable source of raw materials. In most communities fences are erected around farms, gardens, schools, homes, factories, etc. Fence making is also suitable for community upliftment programmes, especially if a contract to manufacture and erect fencing is secured.

Fruit Juice Production
Fruit juice production is one of the cheapest businesses to start.  If you are considering starting your own business, fruit juice bottling is an excellent opportunity particularly if you operate near schools, churches, sports stadiums or taxi ranks. The high production capacity of the equipment will allow you to meet good profit margins every month.

Hair Cutting
Most men, on average, cut their hair every 4 – 6 weeks.  Most women, on the other hand, cut, colour, perm, straighten, braid, etc. their hair all the time. Hair cutting and hairdressing can be a very viable business once you have an established client base.

 

Ice Lolly Production
Ice-lollies are very popular, especially with children.  They are very cheap to produce and the profit margins are high. This is an ideal business if you are near schools, markets, sport stadiums or taxi ranks.  This micro-enterprise can be run effectively, particularly in conjunction with fruit juice production.

Key Cutting
People have the tendency to lose their keys quite often; thus they need duplicate keys to be made. This is an excellent business opportunity since all households, offices, factories, etc. use keys.

Leather Products Production
Leather products such as wallets, bags, belts and shoes are always in demand, particularly in urban areas. Profit margins are high, especially if you can produce your own leather hides.  This micro-manufacturing opportunity attracts people who enjoy working with their hands and are somewhat artistic.

 

Maize Milling
Maize is consumed daily in most households.  There will always be a market for maize if you can produce a good quality product at a competitive price. ATA maize mills have high production capacities and you will be able to supply a large number of people with maize on a daily basis.  This micro-manufacturing business is particularly lucrative if you are a maize farmer or if you can buy maize directly from a maize farmer.

Motor Vehicles
Wherever there are high levels of traffic or poor road conditions, the likelihood of punctured tyres, broken exhausts and accidents exists. This micro-enterprise can also include washing cars and battery charging and is relatively easy to set up and run.

Oil Processing
Good quality oil can be processed on a small scale using simple seed crushing and oil filtering equipment. Crucial to the success and profitability of this business is the sourcing of raw materials of the right quality and at the right price.

 

Peanut Processing
Peanut butter is a very healthy product consumed by people daily.  This is a very profitable business as you can produce large quantities of peanut butter daily. In addition to peanut butter making, you can also package peanuts and sell them.  You can also combine this opportunity with chip or fruit juice production.

 

Polish Production
Polish is used daily in most households.  Most households use at least a litre of polish per month. You can produce and supply polish from your home.  You can supply spaza shops, general dealers or sell directly to the public.

Poultry Production
Poultry is very popular in all communities.  Producing broilers could supply you with a profitable income by selling only a few broilers each day.  Broiler production only needs a labour input of half a day’s work.  It is a good way to generate income even if you are already employed. There is always a market for fresh eggs and therefore an opportunity for a micro-activity that can earn you extra income. Production costs are low and profit margins can be as high as 400%. 100 birds will produce approximately 7 dozen eggs daily.  Ensure that you have a market for this quantity and you’re in business.

Scrap Recycling
This business is suitable for anyone wanting to increase his or her existing income.  You can collect tin cans, plastic, glass, paper, etc. for recycling.

Shoe Repair
Because of the high cost of shoes, a shoe repairer will always have work.  If taken care of properly, leather shoes can last a lifetime. Shoe repairers can also produce other leather goods or buy old shoes, repair them and sell them.

 

Silkscreen Printing
Silkscreen printing is a very profitable business particularly if you supply T-shirts to schools, companies, etc.  The production systems have a good capacity to print a large number of T-shirts in a short time.  If you are artistic this could be a very good business for you. Consider the possibility of entering into the tourism market, as tourists like to buy souvenirs.  If you have a sustainable market you can generate good profits from silkscreen printing.

 

Steel Products
As long as people build houses there will always be a demand for window frames, security gates, burglar bars, etc.  The set-up cost for steel products is relatively low and the profit margins are good.  This opportunity is tailor made for a person that can weld and who would like to go into business.  Steel works are also suitable for community upliftment programmes.

Sweet & Snack Production
People love to snack on sweets and chips and now you can produce them yourself.  If you are located near a school, taxi rank or market place, you should be able to sell you snacks and make money. The profit margins exceed 100% and this business can easily be combined with peanut packaging, chip production or fruit juice manufacturing.

Timber Processing
Timber is a very versatile product.  It is used to build houses, manufacture furniture and for many other products. If you live in an area where timber is available, you can become a processor of timber and supply your community and dealers in your area.  Timber has a high profit margin and there is always a demand for timber because of its versatility.

 

Vegetable Drying
Drying vegetables is an effective alternative if crops cannot be consumed immediately and export is not an option.  If you have access to fruit and vegetables, you can start a drying operation. In doing so, you can provide customers with a product that can be stored away for long periods of time without spoiling.

 

Vegetable & Crop Farming
A good profit can be reaped from producing and selling vegetables and crops.  ATA  has a range of equipment particularly suited to the small-scale farmer or individual with access to a small piece of land. The aim is to make small scale farming more effective and productive. This is also a good opportunity for community projects where members can work on a co-operative basis.