Water is life. Everyone needs water. And fuelled by the increasing need for clean drinking water in urban areas, the water industry is booming. From bottled water to bottle refilling, starting a business in this industry seems like a strong, profitable business.

Looking at the bottled water market in South Africa, the projected growth for 2029 has been valued at USD 152,6 million with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2,8%. This data originates from ResearchAndMarkets.com’s Bottled Water Market in South Africa 2025-2029 report.

According to the report, this is a response to increased consumption by urban dwellers and health-conscious consumers worried about tap water quality.

Key factors fueling the market include rising bottled water consumption among urban dwellers, growing consumer health awareness, and increasing concerns about tap water quality.

But a water business is so much more than bottled water. It is water refilling, water cooler sales, filtering and sometimes even helping businesses install filters for their facilities. This article dives into the particulars of opening a water shop that offers refilling, bottled water, or a service to refill or stock water-dispenser bottles.

Research Your Potential Water Business

Whenever you start a business, you need to make informed decisions. Research the need for a water shop in your area. You can do this by sitting at a busy supermarket, watching who buys water, what size and brand.

This will help you understand what your potential customers are looking for. You can also stop a few people and ask them why they chose to buy water that day.

The next part of your research will be to identify the type of water filtration systems and equipment you need – the amount of water you need to filter will determine the size of your unit. Depending on the needs of your customer, you might also consider a reverse osmosis (RO) system. Often referred to as the gold standard for water purification, it can remove up to 90% of dissolved solids, 100% of organic materials, and virtually all bacteria.

Clients who purchase bottled water for its cleanliness might prefer that you have a RO system.

Business Planning and Budgeting

When you understand the requirements of your shop setup, it’s time to create a budget. It needs to include the cost of rent, installation fees, stock such as the various-sized bottles, and bottling machines if you bottle your own water. You will also need to understand the cost of the water you will be purifying, as well as other expenses associated with running your business. This could be the cost of accounting software, packaging materials, data or Wi-Fi, salaries and marketing.

If you calculate your estimated expenses for the first few months, you can determine what the cost of your products must be and how much you need to sell to cover these costs.

Legal Requirements and Compliance

The legal requirements of a water shop include registering with the CIPC and SARS, and opening a business account.

Whether you are starting your business from home or renting shop space, you must ensure that you adhere to your local municipal bylaws. Reach out to your local municipality to ensure that you comply with any regulations about water use. You should also find out if you need any particular permits or licenses to operate your business in that particular area.

In addition to these legal requirements, you must also obtain the mandatory certification for your bottled water from the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS). The regulatory body provides guidelines for the production and labelling of bottled water, and certification from them indicates that your water meets the required quality standards.

Because of working with a packaged (bottled) product, you can consider obtaining certification from the National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS) for compliance with packaging and labelling regulations.

Set Up Your Business

Once you have identified the appropriate location for your water shop, it is time to order and install all the necessary equipment.

Equipment may include, but is not limited to:

• Pumps
• Filters
• Plumbing
• Counters
• Shelving
• Bottling machines
• Shrink wrapping
• Labelling machines
• Ozonators
• UV lamps

It’s important to note that if you intend to sell sparkling water, you will need to obtain equipment to carbonate the water and ensure your capping machine can handle the pressure of sparkling water.

You will need to look into fridges, point of sales devices, cash registers, and shop branding, too.

Health and safety are always a concern and will be a vital factor to look into while you construct your shop. The production facility and storage need to be safe and meet good hygiene standards.

Brand and Market Your Business

Branding and marketing your water shop means that your name is recognisable and visible on all your products, and that your business information (contact details and address) is included. A large part of this should have already been finalised when you looked into labelling in the previous steps.

Armed with this information, you can open social media accounts where you can start promoting your business. Remember to also claim your Google business profile. This helps you become discoverable in search results without having a company website.

Once you have completed the above steps, you can look into creating a business website. In this way, people who are looking for your business can see what kind of business you are, what water you offer and how they can reach you.

Next, you can look into other forms of marketing, such as placing advertising in the local community newspaper, handing out flyers at a busy shopping mall or even promoting your business with Google Ads.

In growing your client base, you can reach out to local businesses to find out if they are looking for water. This could be offices, schools or hotels and BnBs.

Starting a water business in South Africa is a viable opportunity due to the increasing growth in the market. If you are not starting your own brand from scratch, investing in a water business franchise is also a great option if you are looking for expert-backed support and a brand that is already trusted.