Circumstances usually force people to act. Trained as a motor vehicle mechanic at the Polytechnic, Matthias Juwack worked for a number of companies such as Leyland and DAF, PEW and Henred Fruehauf before he became independent.
In 2012, when Henred Fruehauf scaled down its operations due to the scarcity of forex, Juwack found himself jobless.
To make ends meet, Juwack got into a trailer manufacturing business based on the skills he got from Henred.
“This is how I came to stand on my own. I started this business in February this year. The Trailer Manufacturing Group [TMG] is a trailer-manufacturing company where we refurbish, paint and manufacture trailers, among other things,” says the father of three daughters.
His journey to entrepreneurship started when he completed his motor vehicle mechanic training in1992 and attained a grade one trade test certificate.
From 1994, Juwack worked at PEW specialising in trailers and buses until 2004 when he joined Henred Fruehauf where he says he also gained a lot of experience which led him where he is today.
fifth wheel
His local trailer manufacturing company started out with trailer repairs, but now they are building them from a scratch and the managing director says he plans to start building tankers in the next 6 to 12 months.
Juwack has employed 20 people in different areas, including welding, mechanics and painting.
Most of the raw materials are imported from South Africa and these include steel and finishing parts such as braking and electronic systems.
Juwack, who was born on March 25 1968, comes from Chitala Village, Traditional Authority Nsamala in Balaka.
