WATCH | How I turned my R350 Sassa grant into a growing vegetable garden business | News24 (2025)

Nicky Jafta and his wife Lynette have grown their vegetable garden business from a small patch to two hectares in five years. (News24/Chelsea Ogilvie)

• Five years ago, Nicky Jafta used his R350 unemployment grant to buy half a pumpkin and a few seeds to plant at his Kraaifontein home.
• Today, he has a beautiful vegetable garden business growing cauliflower, spinach, onions, beetroot, and much more over two hectares.
• He sells to agents and local customers via WhatsApp and uses TikTok to market his goods.
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Nicky Jaftha's small little garden in De Novo, Kraaifontein, is nothing short of lovely.

What started out as a 10x30m patch in his yard to grow a few pumpkins now boasts beautiful hues of purple beetroot, green cauliflower, yellow lemons and more over one hectare - and is expanding into two.

He sells his produce to around 10 local customers a day and four agents monthly from small towns around the Western Cape.

But this chapter of his story started at the ripe age of 62 when he was unemployed during the Covid-19 pandemic five years ago and needed a way to make a living.

"I only had a small piece of soil here. It's expanded and expanded, and it's growing bigger and bigger.

"I sell to the community now and all over the Western Cape, from Grabouw, Paarl, Hout Bay. I have a customer who buys from me and sends to Namibia."

We visited Nicky on a warm autumn day, and the scene was idyllic on his small holding. Little patches of purple and green were adorned by rows of specially chosen small trees.

Best sellers, beans and TikTok

Sporting a Jafta's Garden T-shirt, a gift given to him by his son on his 61^st birthday, Nicky and his wife, Lynette, are all smiles as they greet us.

Surrounded by pumpkins, green beans and his other sale items, he tells us a little about how he started with money from his unemployment grant.

He said:

"Before, I was just giving the produce away, but when I started selling, I realised I could make money and go bigger."

Nicky turned 60 two years ago and is now on a Sassa pension. He uses that to supplement his small business and increase the sales of his produce.

Today, his best sellers are green beans, followed by pumpkins and onions. But he also sells green peppers, chillis, carrots, beetroot, spring onions and tomatoes. In winter, cabbage and broccoli also see an uptick.

"I have a lot of different stuff," he laughs. "I can't remember all of them."

Nicky credits the South African Institute for Entrepreneurship (SAIE) with helping to get the word out. His story and garden have been punted on TikTok, spreading the word about his produce.

In the blood and a dream of spring

Nicky spent most of his working life as a truck driver and working for a distilling company.

But he credits his late start in the world of growing things to being "in the blood". His family always had "green fingers", and his father was a sheep herder.

His wife's family have lived in his current home for more than 30 years, but do not own it, as it is still government land. According to the Jaftas, a process to hand over a title deed has been held up by the changing of ministers at national level.

He has been granted permission by the Western Cape Department of Social Development to expand into a second hectare, but he would love the three-decade-long title deed process to be wrapped up at national level.

Looking to the future, his dream is to establish his business to a new level of productivity, make a sustainable income, and continue serving his community.

He has already prepared the extra hectare of land to begin planting but still needs a few things. His bakkie was stolen last year and was not insured, so most of his profits are going into transport for now.

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"Ploughing has been done, and I only need fencing and water. That's what I need to be successful by the end of this year."

If you would like to contact Jafta's Garden, the WhatsApp business number is 061 330 9345. You can find out more about the garden on the SAIE TikTok page here.

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