Tapping into Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) resources has seen Thami Manona's ice business heat up, now plans are afoot to expand into the rural market within one year of starting.

Dubbed the "Iceman", Manona traded his job as marketing manager in an alcohol producing company when he spotted a gap for ice in the market. His first port of call was the Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC), which he says nurtured his business from inception.

Now based in East London, the entrepreneur who hails from Queenstown accessed financing and non-financial support to the tune of over R390 000 from ECDC, which he says was a solid base to get his business up and running.

Manona is the founder and managing director of Frosty Ice which supplies ice to clubs, pubs, and restaurants.

"I saw pubs, clubs, taverns, quick stores and bottle stores and restaurants were an under-serviced segment of the market while I was working in the liquor industry as a marketing manager. That was a market segment that's not truly tapped into," says Manona.

While his background in sales and marketing was a key driver that helped him identify an untapped market, he says ECDC support fills the gap for key business development expertise which he needed to turn his business idea into reality.

"I approach ECDC and gained access to a team of experts who guided me through the process of setting up a business at each step of the way from registration, to business plan development and financing."

As an economic development agency in the Eastern Cape, ECDC views supporting small businesses in the province as vital to fulfilling its mandate. It provides non-financial and financial support through its Enterprise Development Services and Development Finance units.

Manona registered his business through ECDC which provides the service on behalf of Companies and Intellectual Property Registration Office (CIPRO) at its head office in East London.

An ECDC service provider helped him conduct a feasibility study and develop a business plan which he presented for financing. The corporation paid the largest portion of his business plan development fees at a time when working capital was constrained.

"I paid just 10 percent for the service provider and ECDC paid 90 percent," says Manona. "It was a big help because as an entrepreneur starting out, most of the time you might not be in a position to fork out R8, 000 towards a business plan.

He adds that ECDC helped him identify weaknesses and threats in his original plan and modify it to close the gaps that posed a risk of failure to his business.

"ECDC gave me support and guidance all along the way, giving expert advice as to what makes business sense. My service provider also helped me out with the viability study. They (ECDC) were there throughout the process and with my service provider; we bounced off ideas with ECDC because we had to comply with ECDC standards."

Manona went on to get almost R400, 000 finance from ECDC with which he bought equipment for Frosty Ice and business operations kicked off.

Lulama Moses who was ECDC Queenstown account manager at the time, she was impressed with Manona's idea and with his ability to take advantage of a need when he saw it.

"The original business idea was great, yet he was flexible enough to change it to take advantage of the soccer world cup when he decided to start supplying pubs and sports bars," Moses says.

Frosty Ice, which was started in July 2010, now employs four people and has plans of expanding to the Mthatha area with a view to supply ice to rural communities in the coming months.

"With ECDC, the support continues until implementation. Even now they're still assisting even now with my expansion," Manona says.