Blessing is doing well and remains extremely busy conducting various activities to generate income. The research report produced by the Brown IE team provided, in his words, a very clear roadmap to Solar Rain, and it has inspired him to continue his efforts and sharpen his focus on Solar Rain.

The broader context is that over the past months, the Western Cape province experienced the return of loadshedding, after a relatively long reprieve of 10 straight months. However, the return of loadshedding on its own is probably not enough on its own to push low-income households and township-based businesses to invest in solar electricity. The main incentive to switching to solar, and create opportunities for Solar Rain, probably remains the ever-increasing cost of electricity. As clearly established during the research, the threat of some form of penalty to solar-equipped households to compensate for Eskom’s decrease in revenue is another big threat to Blessing’s business.

Despite these challenges, Blessing feels that this second consulting assignment from Brown-IE has allowed him to engage with individuals he wouldn’t have met otherwise and look at the market from a new perspective and with a fresh eye. Blessing is realistic: to grab a share of the market for solar equipment, Solar Rain first needs capital and credibility.

Blessing is in the process of quitting his current dayjob at Spier. He wants to keep working in tourism in order to generate an income but be self-employed the hope for more lucrative and flexible activities than the current ones he has. He will work with Khayelitsha Travel and Tours, a partner organization he was introduced to in 2024 by a Brown cohort. The objective of this move is clear to him: Have more time for Solar Rain, save money and raise capital.