Device repair specialist weFix co-CEOs Malcom Daitz and Ariel Kolin are contributing to a partnership with Restore SA to help reconstruct the livelihoods of South Africans affected by the riots lasts month.
The Restore SA initiative, started by Joshua Cox of Fix Forward, focuses on connecting entrepreneurs whose businesses were looted or damaged, with volunteer mentors offering support and guidance so they can access the tools and mentorship required, to begin to rebuild and repair the damage that has occurred.
Restore SA has onboarded over 100 mentors to offer support to affected businesses and it is expecting more mentors to join the initiative in the next few weeks.
The Restore SA fund aims to provide support in the short term and will also continue to assist and grow the businesses on an ongoing basis through the help of its dedicated mentors.
Mentorship onboarding is indicated to be simple and inclusive, so that any business can apply.
A website has been created where either a small business owner or mentor can register.
Affected small business owners can create a profile and describe the sort of support they need.
Volunteers browse these profiles and select which business they are able to support.
Restore SA will then send contact details to both the volunteer and business owner for them to connect. Each small business that signs up will receive one to two hours of free mentorship weekly for at least two months.
weFix has committed funding towards the initiative by dedicating 10% of the value of each trade-in received by weFix to the Restore SA fund.
The fund will be managed by partner nonprofit organisation Ranyaka Community Transformation, which will identify the businesses needing support and oversee the disbursement of funds.