A winning brand

Kevin, a Duduza-born entrepreneur, is about to make his business mark in the United Kingdom (UK).

The 29- year-old public relations graduate will get the opportunity of a lifetime in promoting his brand Iintsizwa Ziphelele.

With the help of his three partners they started a t-shirt printing business in 2008.

Although finances were tight, the team managed to keep afloat, selling at poetry sessions in Pretoria.

Their big break came early this year when they were given funding by the Technology Transfer fund.

This meant that all the necessary equipment and state of the art printing tools would be available for them through the sponsor.

Only a few companies in South African have this kind of machinery which is described by Kevin as one of the best in the world.

When word of the funding came, Kevin chose to quit his day job as a marketing and communications officer at the Johannesburg Zoo.

“The experience of working at the zoo was the best teacher in my life, but I had to make use of the chance given to me, so I chose to give my all to the business,” he says.

Kevin explains that after months of waiting for a response from his potential sponsors he was ready to close the chapter and focus on his work at the zoo.

“It was hard because we needed help and it was taking forever to come, but when it came, we were more than ready,” he adds.

His partners also decided to leave their jobs in order to grow the business and are currently printing their merchandise in Soweto.

As a part of an organisation called MEDO, Kevin was encouraged to apply for the opportunity to go to the UK

MEDO specialises in enterprise and supplier development to satisfy the requirements of South African companies and complies with Black Economic Empowerment codes of best practice.

He was chosen out of hundreds of young entrepreneurs who are registered under MEDO.

Every year, they give young entrepreneurs the opportunity to go to the United Kingdom to present their business to potential investors and the board of department of trade and industry.

With the support of his team and family, he chose to represent Iintsizwa Ziphelele while the others focused on business.

Kevin admits that the road to the UK has not been easy and he has had to work extra hard to keep his motivation high.

The selection process takes months and the numbers are slowly cut with only a few getting the chance to travel overseas.

“Meeting other young entrepreneurs who were also gunning for the very same opportunity was intimidating at times, but I always put my best foot forward, ” he adds.

Kevin was able to impress the panel with his ideas for a sustainable business and ways to sell international brands locally without export fees.

“I told the panel that with my special and technologically advanced printing equipment, I could print international brands for young designers locally, saving money in the process,” he explains.

This idea gave him a unanimous vote from the panel and the ticket to an opportunity of a lifetime.

He will leave on November 27 and return on December 5.

“I will be wearing my brand all day every day when I am there so that people can see that we mean business,” he adds.

Iintsizwa Ziphelele will give new meaning to the phrase, ‘been there, done that, got the t-shirt’.