Trailblazing in an ‘aggressive’ male dominated industry Josephine Malakaone, a young lady from Bramely, Johannesburg has broken barriers for Black youth and women in vehicle towing.

Josephine grew impatient with the slow pace of transformation after working for leading corporate companies in the automotive sector for ten years. Seeing the lack of diversity and under representation of Black woman all around, she felt compelled in late 2019 to establish Basadi Automotive (Pty) Ltd providing towing and fleet movement services. Barely 30years at the time, she was also appalled at the chronically high youth unemployment rate in the country and took to heart the old adage that “one BASADI AUTOMOTIVE IS HERE TO PUSH BOUNDARIES is never served so well as by oneself”. Undeterred by a lack of resources, she bought her first truck from an auction, repaired it, and converted it to a tow truck. She then went knocking on doors of corporate companies who manage large fleets and got her first breakthrough with Avis Fleet which gave her a contract to tow vehicles in their fleet. Even when business came to a near standstill with the national lockdown from early 2020 which halted most commercial activities, Josephine persevered, continued knocking on doors and steadily grew her corporate client base.

Barloworld Siyakhula was inspired by her drive and tenacity and has provided her with development finance to acquire a new flat-bed truck and a six-car carrier that will support further growth. In addition to Avis Fleet, other Barloworld Divisions have also provided market access to the Company. Barloworld’s leading car rental business, Avis Budget Rent-a-Car, along with Beyond Mobility which operates car dealerships. Josephine is firmly on her way to realising her mission. Basadi Automotive now employs eight people full-time and provides part-time work opportunities to an additional 20 when there is high demand.

Our motto at Barloworld is “to inspire a world of difference”, and through Barloworld Siyakhula, we are proud to support entrepreneurs who live by the same ethos.

Back to previous page