You could call Tracy Henley a doer, or you could call her a dream maker. Both are equally true.
Doer or dream maker? Both. That’s because Tracy Henley’s business interests are broad and varied – that’s the doing part. She owns a string of filling stations, is involved in property development and even established a chain of nursery schools. “I love business,” she says simply. “I’m always looking for ways to improve my environment, and that of others.”
That’s what led her to create the Riversands I-Hub, which is where the dream maker side of her personality comes to the fore. This ambitious project was created out of a private-public partnership back in 2015, and since then has created more than 3 000 jobs. “We’ve had so many different types of entrepreneurs get their start here. One of our first start-ups broadcast his own radio station out of Diepsloot. He went on to find employment at a major radio station, even though he had no formal training. Then there’s Tonka Bean Bakery, which had a cult following thanks to its vanilla custard donuts. The business’s first employee was a painter who used to peek in every day because he was fascinated by the baking process. We have countless other stories of companies who began here and went on to set up bigger outlets in established malls or manufacturing areas – some of our previous tenants now have a presence at Melrose Arch,” Tracy says.
The hub’s success comes from its unique model. The team balks at the idea of calling it an incubator, because it’s so much more. True, entrepreneurs can apply for resources to boost their businesses, but the I-Hub offers a host of other services as well, helping business owners take their small businesses to commercially viable entities, for example, or helping them incorporate technology to make their ventures more sustainable. It also provides loans and works with large businesses that need to focus on ESD (Enterprise and Supplier Development) – all with the goal of ensuring that small businesses become a sustainable part of a thriving ecosystem.
Tracy explains that the idea of the hub grew out of another of her projects, the Diepsloot Youth Programme, which itself was established to provide upliftment programmes and sports initiatives for Diepsloot’s youngsters. Netball and soccer leagues were created, an arts centre set up, and space provided for students who found the township simply too noisy or dangerous to study at night. “We knew, though, that these kids would face another problem as soon as they left school … what would they do about employment?” Hence the accent on promoting entrepreneurship.
Tracy’s passion for entrepreneurship stems from her belief that it’s small businesses, rather than corporates, that will keep our economy afloat. “I see entrepreneurship as a refusal to wait for others to help you. It’s an acknowledgement that you need to help yourself and that you believe in yourself, a drive to give yourself a better life, to pay your kids’ school fees, to put food on your table.”
Her enthusiasm is perhaps unsurprising, given she grew up in a family where business was a major focus. Her parents, Ernest and Gaye Corbett, established the iconic Tintswalo Collection, and from an early age, Tracy and her siblings were encouraged to give input and ideas. Resourcefulness was a trait that was encouraged, too: “At the end of the year, we’d go camping. Around Christmas, we’d pick a family member’s name from a hat, and we’d have to make a present for them from whatever was around. That exercise taught me to use what I have … it’s a skill that I put to use even now, networking, using contacts and skillsets, being resourceful”
That’s been an incredibly useful asset at times when Tracy has found herself coming up against unexpected challenges – and, as a woman operating in cut-throat business environments, she’s come across many. That’s why her resilience has proved invaluable. “I don’t give up easily, and I’m grateful for that. I have an ability to push through.”
She’s also got a chameleon-like ability to make the best of difficult situations. For example, when the Covid-19 pandemic turned the Riversands I-Hub conferencing facilities into a series of echoing corridors, she turned the facility into a food packing site so that the Diepsloot Youth Programme could distribute thousands of food parcels to the nearby communities.
How is she going to harness these qualities going forward? Her focus is going to be on growing her enterprises, especially the nursery schools (of which are there currently three) and her property development company. “Growing these will give me the scope and resources to do what I really want – which is to develop and enable people and communities. I want to change the status quo, so although I’m never quite sure what my next step will be, it will be something that puts this goal within my reach.”
Details: riversandsihub.co.za, @riversands_i_hub
Text: LISA WITEPSKI.
