The not-so-chilled truth: Owning an ice-making business during load shedding

Fluctuating with the highs and lows of the tourism industry, the commercial ice-making business is not as lucrative as many may think.

Mtubatuba resident Hugo Timmerman has been in the business of making ice since 1995, but it was in 2003 that he went commercial with Aqua Chill, he told Zululand Observer.

He supplies restaurants, accommodation establishments and petrol stations in Mtubatuba, St Lucia and through an independent contractor in Hluhluwe.

While many would think ice is highly sought after all-year-round, given that the Zululand region barely experiences winter, but the reality is that the business is only profitable during December.

And when the December tourism season is a slow one, as was the case in 2018, Timmerman’s ice business takes a dip during what should be his busiest time of year.

Part of the stringent filtration system that Timmerman’s water goes through before becoming ice
PHOTO: Tamlyn Jolly

“This is a very unpredictable business and can be difficult to plan for,” he said.

“Business was so slow in December that we did not switch on our machines until March 2019 as there was no need to make any ice until we had depleted the bags leftover from the festive season that year.”

While this festive season was much better and saw Timmerman’s business sell 60,000 bags in December, the rest of the year sees about 4,000 bags sold each month, at times fewer.

“But it is the behind the scenes and what goes into making ice, that people don’t understand.”

Not wanting to use unreliable, poor quality tap water to make his ice, Timmerman’s operation relies on rainwater, which is filtered numerous times before the ice is made.

With an onsite storage capacity of 140,000 litres, soon to be upgraded, the water is sent through stringent filtration processes to ensure Timmerman’s high standard.

“All of this costs money, and while my overheads have increased more than 300% since 2013, my product price has increased by only R2 per bag.”

Timmerman said his electricity account has increased by 360%, the bags by 300% and wages by 250%.

“In 2013, my December electricity account was R18,000, while in December 2019, it was R70,000.”

He said he was already on the back foot at the beginning of December as load shedding cost his business 10,000 bags in sales.

“I have installed solar panels, which does help, but still my overheads cut well into my small profit margin.”

While Timmerman has kept his prices down, what the businesses who buy his product charge when selling ice to the public, is out of his control.

Cashing in on the holiday season, it was reported that some retailers were selling ice at R50 per bag, a mark-up of much more than 200%.

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