• Capacity Development Provider

KwaZulu-Natal Clothing and Textiles Cluster

The eThekwini Furniture Cluster (EFC) is a not-for-profit public/private sector partnership of furniture manufacturing and retail firms in KZN. Established in 2018, the EFC aims to boost the competitiveness of the local industry to ensure that it can compete in the global market. The strategic focus is on firm level competitiveness, the value chains they operate in and the local and international furniture industry they form a part of. They develop manufacturers and their value chains through manufacturing upgrading projects, shared learnings between members, value chain alignment, SME development, and skills development programmes.

  • Stages of Support

    • Idea
    • Start-up
    • Early
    • Growth
    • Mature

  • Nonfinancial support delivery mechanism

    • Mentoring
    • Classroom / seminar training
    • Direct Consulting Services
    • Cohort or group support
    • Competitions / prizes
    • Peer to Peer / Network-based Support

  • Nonfinancial Support

    • Leadership development
    • Access to networks and partners
    • Marketing support or market research
    • Building HR capacity
    • Business strategy and planning
    • Financial management
    • Needs assessment
    • Performance management
    • Value / supply chain development
    • Governance structure
    • Investor showcases
    • Building M&E capacity
    • Investor matchmaking
    • Technology development or adoption
    • Media exposure
    • Building technical capacity

  • Investment Instruments

    • Debt
    • Grant
    • Loans

  • Intervention Type

    • Provide nonfinancial services to entrepreneurs directly
    • Conduct research on the sector
    • Promote and educate about entrepreneurship
    • Leverage further funding and support services for members. Accurately diagnose problems and provide industrial development solutions for manufacturing members. Share learnings between members to increase impact and reach of programmes.

  • Sectors of Focus

    • Manufacturing
    • Supply chain services
    • Wholesale and retail trade

  • Stakeholder or Business Model Focus

    • Social enterprise
    • Women entrepreneurs
    • Science, engineering or invention based businesses
    • Gender inclusion
    • Youth entrepreneurs
    • Urban communities
    • Minority or previously excluded population

  • Impact objectives

    • Capacity building
    • Employment generation
    • Income/productivity growth
    • Access to information
    • Access to financial services
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