2020FLOOR
Meet the new owners of FloorworX who have made 2024 the year of 2020-FLOOR by investing into the flooring industry to save 70 years of local vinyl expertise. Talk about swooping in at the very last minute like a superhero to save the day, Manyano Jele and Bianca Shakinovsky, two unlikely partners, have joined forces, each driven by a personal passion, to save FloorworX from it’s fate.
Despite moving to Johannesburg with his family years later, Manyano’s desire for revitalizing East London stems from his birth link in the township of Mdantsane in East London. He has qualifications in Industrial engineering, Certified Cost Engineering and a MBA from Hult International Business School. These qualifications mean he has a wealth of international experience in the mining and infrastructure sectors. Manyano has over 18 years of experience working for firms including Murray & Roberts, South Deep Mine, Harmony Mine, Transaction Capital, GIBB, and Hatch.
He also founded Mila Green Solutions and KES Smart Cloud companies. He has held positions on the boards of Newshelf Mine and ISDA so FloorworX is definitely in capable hands.
Bianca Shakinovsky is no stranger to the flooring industry. At the age of sixteen, she began her career in the sector and went on to establish her own prosperous company, PentaFloor. Bianca faced hardships growing up in a single parented home and so Bianca went to work for a paving company to help support her mother and look after her younger brother. She would attend school in the mornings and work in the afternoons. She progressed into interior design and later on, influenced by her experience in flooring, founded PentaFloor.
Bianca’s MBA and extensive knowledge of the flooring sector will be crucial in transforming FloorworX from a manufacturing-focused company to one that is customer-focused. With this in mind, Bianca has decided to close the floor covering contracting division of PentaFloor.
The new FloorworX board of directors will be governed by Mikki Xayiya as the a Non-Executive Chairman. Serial entrepreneur and co- founder of thriving businesses in the listed and private space as attested by his key roles in Mvelaphanda Group and associated investments. Mikki is passionate about contributing to the economic growth of the Eastern Cape. Mikki played his part in the democratization process in South Africa which saw him involved in the anti-apartheid struggle, ending up as a political prisoner at Robben Island. He is a passionate reader who values the transformative power of education.
To bring FloorworX back to life, Manyano and Bianca will collaborate closely with the staff and management team. Reviving old relationships, forming new ones, and igniting growth for the East London community are all part of FloorworX’s exciting future!
