Tabisile Mahleka

22-year-old Nqobile Mkhumla follows her dream of having her own clothing line.

Mkhumla, hailing from Sydenham, is currently doing her final year in Bachelor of Social Sciences at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. Nqobile’s inspiration to start her own business came from her love for fashion and clothes.

“Ever since I was young, I loved dressing up, but the thing is, finance was holding me back. At this age where I was able to gain some sort of funds then I realised that in order for me to do something that will bring me money and at the end of the day still enjoy it, let me just branch into fashion, which is basically selling what I love and what we (women) wear,” she said.

Mkhumla’s choice for this line of work was her passion of knowing how to dress up well and not spending a lot of money while at it. That skill inspired her to branch into this business and making one look good at a cheaper price.

“I’ve realised that more than anything it doesn’t take a lot of money to dress up good but it takes like a minimum of  R100 to dress up and look like a millionaire, fashion inspired, pushed me to greater things,” said Nqobile.

Starting any business comes with its challenges and Mkhumla explains the pros and cons of the industry.

“In order to start a business, discipline comes first, you need to discipline yourself in terms of when you are starting a business, and you need to be passionate about it. More than anything you need to discipline yourself that whatever money or profit you make aside; you do not dig into the same jar before calculating how much you make at the end of the week or month not knowing how long the business is going to last. You need to maintain professionalism, keep time and be honest with your customers. Have a good marketing strategy of drawing people in,” she said.

For future plans and how Nqobile will go about to achieve her goals, she emphasised that this venture is the start-up of her own clothing line and using her own designs and removing herself from her comfort zone to achieve her end goal.

“My customers should expect my own design from Claire’s Closet very soon,” she said.

Picture: Nqobile Mkhumla