Blue Wave Mobile Bar
What does your company do?
We provide mobile bar services such as cocktail bars, sushi bars and keg bars that bring peace of mind, allowing the client to be a guest at their own event. We combine professional staff, custom drink menus, high-quality equipment, and the flexibility to serve at any location, making us one of the top mobile bar service in Gauteng to offer fully customisable themed setups with high-quality, professional beverage services, exceptional presentation, and superior customer service. Our operations allow us to support local suppliers (from whom we source fresh fruit and veg, ice, straws, cups etc. required for our cocktails) and employ youth in the hospitality sector.
What is your biggest success?
Over the past year, I started submitting Blue Wave Mobile Bar to various small business development programmes on offer by corporate South Africa, which assist with high-level guidance on small business strategy/growth such as branding, marketing, sales and operations. One of them was 54 Collective's Entrepreneur Academy which awarded us $5000 (R93,000) in September 2024. With this funding, we upgraded our equipment (built more bars, bought more glasses, bar equipment, and upgraded our uniform) which allowed us to expand our operations. As a direct result of this funding, we were able to secure more corporate clients (e.g., Savanna and Lipton) and service more private events, doubling our revenue from R200,000 in September 2024 to R400,000 in December 2024, and bought a bakkie to top it all off. This expansion enabled us to serve over 35 events over that period, double our repeat booking rate, and to support 10 freelance bartenders over that period.
What has been your biggest hurdle?
The COVID-19 pandemic has been the biggest challenge since our inception in 2017. Despite gaining momentum in 2020, the business was cut short and we had to adapt our business model. To overcome this, we encouraged prepayments from clients as they were also forced to postpone their celebrations pending lockdown regulations, which ultimately made it easier for customers to afford our services. During this period, we also supported other similar businesses by collaborating with them and referring clients. Another hurdle that resulted from the pandemic was competition, as people losing jobs in the hospitality industry opened up opportunities for mobile bar businesses. As a result, we now compete with more businesses due to low barriers to entry and increased demand for these services. To mitigate this, we define our brand, marketing, and operational strategies through the aforementioned small business development programmes, conduct competitive analyses, and staying ahead of the curve.
