For many companies and individuals alike, security is a key concern and one that needs addressing by experienced professionals. In South Africa, one woman entrepreneur is building a business that brings peace of mind together with a highly experienced approach to risk management. Ntsoaki Kortjass, founder of Tsoabelo Security Solutions, is putting people and property first, and building a reputation for great service at the same time.
LoA learned more about what it takes to build a highly specialised business from founder Ntsoaki Kortjass.
What does your company do?
Our company is a security company offering guarding services, installations of access control systems and CCTV cameras to the corporate, commercial, residential, retail and government sectors.
“We are purpose driven, and our purpose as a company is Value, Service, Security.”
“We are in a people industry serving safety and security, therefore unlike our industry peers, our approach is always to move from a basic offering to value-added security solutions for our clients.”
What inspired you to start your company?
My passion for creating empowering environments, combined with my passion for the protection and risk management industry.
Why should anyone use your service or product?
We are purpose driven, and our purpose as a company is Value, Service, Security.
The core of our existence is adding value to others, this is what is most important to us. To add value to others, one must first value others. We are in a people industry serving safety and security, therefore unlike our industry peers, our approach is always to move from a basic offering to value-added security solutions for our clients.
Tell us a little about your team
Our team, starting from management right through to the security guards, has a service heart and is prepared to serve the needs of the people we come into everyday contact with. The Tsoabelo security guards are more than just a body at the gate or someone strolling the premises. Our guards are ambassadors who have the ability to efficiently deal with everyday people and their eccentricities. We manage our team through a linear structure that empowers key people to make vital decisions, alleviating the massive operational hierarchies normally associated with security guarding operations.
“The Tsoabelo security guards are more than just a body at the gate or someone strolling the premises. Our guards are ambassadors who have the ability to efficiently deal with everyday people and their eccentricities.”
Share a little about your entrepreneurial journey. And, do you come from an entrepreneurial background?
I was brought up in an entrepreneurial household. My dad has had various business ventures to date. My mother, although employed as a full time teacher, operated a side business using her bakkie to transport people and goods to surrounding rural areas. My grandmother sewed church garments which she sold at church and also ran a small ice business with my brother and I from home. The ice business was mainly to teach us the basic principles of running a business and reinvesting in your business.
As a young girl who looked up to her parents, I aspired to be a business owner. However, as I got older my fear of failure prevailed and I would avoid by all means to run the entrepreneurship marathon. In 2013 I was introduced to the security industry, I joined a small security company as a receptionist and within a year had moved to the helm of the company. As a manager of the company, I quickly found my passion for the protection and risk management industry. The lioness in me embarked on intensive research into the industry's processes, context and content, which gave me insights into the workings of a security business, and the ability to form the blueprint for my own security company that was established in 2017.
What are your future plans and aspirations for your company?
My future plans and aspirations for my company are for Tsoabelo Security Solutions to be the first black woman owned security company in South Africa, and to be counted amongst the giants in the security industry and to build a strong and well respected brand.
“The lioness in me embarked on intensive research into the industry's processes, context and content, which gave me insights into the workings of a security business, and the ability to form the blueprint for my own security company.”
What gives you the most satisfaction being an entrepreneur?
The opportunity to commit to an uplifting ethos that creates social economic change and progress amongst previously disadvantaged people and the opportunity to autograph my work with excellence.
What's the biggest piece of advice you can give to other women looking to start-up?
The entrepreneurial journey is not for the faint hearted, especially in male dominated industries. It takes commitment, discipline, persistence and an unbreakable spirit. This journey has taught me invaluable lessons, the biggest lesson being learning to create relationships that go beyond the people who look and sound like me. I attended primary and high school at a 'Model C' school, then went on to a private art college to study graphic and information design, so I only associated myself with a certain type of crowd. Through my journey as an entrepreneur, I have realized that the people who influence, impact and speak to your journey are not always going to look or speak like you, or even come from the same background as you. So the biggest piece of advice I can give to other women looking to start up is to learn to create relationships that go beyond your immediate circles and the familiar.
Contact or follow Tsoabelo Security Solutions
WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | EMAIL ntsoaki@tsoabelosolutions.co.za
Why LoA loves it….
They say that to succeed in business you need to find your passion and your purpose, and Ntsoaki Kortjass has done just that. Her passion for empowering people through the highly specialised business she is creating, combined with her love for the protection and risk management industry, is what separates her from others in her field. Leading from the front, she is also creating an empowering business culture that means her employees are also her ambassadors. She is an inspiration in a tough business sector. --- Melanie Hawken, founder and ceo of Lionesses of Africa