Congratulations to seven young go-getters from the Western Cape who graduated from our six-month JumpStart Retail Essentials Programme (REP) on 6 November. Equipped with essential supervisory skills needed in a retail store environment, the interns secured employment after successful placement at Mr Price Sport, Mr Price Apparel, Mr Price Home and Sheet Street.    

The six-month REP blends 30% classroom learning with 70% workplace experience, providing an excellent platform for youth to develop critically lacking retail store supervisory skills.  

This year marks the debut of the REP in the Western Cape.  

“The launch of our JumpStart Retail Essentials Programme in the Western Cape signals our intent to accelerate and deepen our youth empowerment efforts in that region,” said Mr Price Foundation Executive Director Octavius Phukubye. 

All the graduates – from Philippi, Delft, Maitland, Worcester and Muizenburg – gained invaluable skills and experience needed to jumpstart their retail careers. 

“Participating in the six-month JumpStart internship has been the greatest opportunity of my life,” said REP graduate Hlengiwe Mthombeni. 

“It has given me a greater understanding of the world of retail in different store departments and environments. The REP equipped us with valuable skills, knowledge and networks. We are now ready to apply them in the retail environment,” Hlengiwe said. 

We invested over R400,000 in our REP pilot in the Western Cape, with interns receiving total stipends of R230,000, and plan to scale up the programme to reach more unemployed youth in 2025. 

The sky is the limit for our grads – and we thank our employer partners for creating #Hope4Youth!  

We are eager to deepen our impact by forging new partnerships in retail. Contact us to explore partnership opportunities at [email protected] 

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