Please Introduce yourselves to our readers

Our names are Joyce Zengeni and my partner is Tafadzwa Kapuya we are Zimbabweans living in the heart of Nairobi Kenya. We love making African traditional food, especially from Zimbabwe.

What business are you into?

We are in the food industry and we have a restaurant. We are showing and making the Zimbabwe dishes for Zimbabweans living in Kenya and the locals

Where are you located?

At Soko Safi Mall next to the Greenhouse in Ngong Road.

Please tell us how did you meet and how did the idea of Pamuzinda come?

My partner in crime and I (Joyce and Tafadzwa) went to school together Mhondoro Ngezi back in Zimbabwe. We have been friends from 1-4 and we sat next to each other in class. We were not bright students but surprisingly we loved our food class (Food and Nutrition) after school we did a diploma in Culinary arts and food and beverages. We re-connected when Joyce moved to Kenya. With our love for food, we saw an opportunity to open a restaurant in Kenya and bring brand ambassadors with our Zimbabwe cuisine to the Zimbabweans living in Kenya and the locals. Hence Pamuzinda was birthed.

Joyce, please tell us why the name Pamuzinda?

Pamuzinda represents pamusha, Pamusha Mukuru. This is a place where we carter for all the Zimbabwe tribes and dishes in one place #Pamuzinda #Musha mukuru

Tafadzwa being in a foreign land what was your greatest challenge in establishing Pamuzinda?

Networking with suppliers and finding them was hard. We needed specific ingredients for our menu and we had a communication barrier to some of the people for example introducing some dishes such as Madora (Caterpillar) they would run away.

Joyce Please tell us what was the motivating factor in establishing the business?

Being brand ambassadors of Zim food and coming from the Southern Part of Africa we knew we had to bring the natural and authentic taste of food, not the GMO. We do not spice our food.

What are your values as a business?

• We value how our foods should be saved.
• We value People’s health
• We value Zimbabwean food

Do you just do Zimbabwean dishes only or?

When we started we would do Zimbabwean food. We also have our side part where we have Kenya dishes too but mainly we have Zimbabwean specials.

Do you accept specific orders of Zimbabwean Dishes outside of your menu?

At the moment we have much of our Zimbabwe foods covered, we have not had customers ask for a meal outside from the menu but if it does happen we just prepare the order.

Joyce, what inspires you to keep running the business?

My motivation is my passion, my motivation is the drive that works me up to serve good and healthy food, my motivation still stands knowing am raising the bar high as the ambassador of my country that’s my pride.

Tell us about the Ste Diamond Women organization?

It is an NGO founded by a Zimbabwean lady living in the US Melody Gwenanguruve, it is centered on young women who are stagnant and have grown up and did not have an opportunity to live their dreams or passion.

Is the Ste Diamond Women organization only just for women in Nairobi only or?

It is global, we are looking at every girl child. We believe that every woman is a diamond and should shine in their way.

Tafadzwa what is your word of advice to the others out there who want to start a business out there?

Follow your heart, believe in yourself, have faith and God will always make a way where there is a will.

Joyce, what is your word of advice to the other ladies out there who are studying culinary arts?

Believe in yourself and take it with the full tenacity so that your skills can be seen and have more chefs following the path.

With the world pandemic Covid 19 upon us, how has it affected or improved your business?

With God’s help we have managed to have customers, we have sit inns and we do deliveries. We thank God we never had a meltdown.

Please can you give us your social media pages?

Facebook:  Pamuzinda Kenya   chefJoy, Instagram:  chef Joy

They say the closing of one door is the way of another. As we cried of the crisis of the Covid-19 pandemic it led to a rise of E-sectors where terms such as E-learning, Online marketing became of significance leading to one of the famous brand becoming the talk of the day, #Hatiperi.

Hatiperi is a clothing brand owned by a young man by the name of Tino Matayi. This label in literal translation means “we will never end”. The label specializes in casual wear such as t-shirts, caps, hoodies, and masks. Primarily, the brand appeals to the youth demographic expressing the hearts of the youth leading the owner to achieve his major aims.

Hatiperi brand grew organically gaining grip and fame first from close friends’ then the flow of impressed customers led to the ladder of popularity as they advertised Hatiperi’s work through different social media platforms. One of the major aspects that made and makes the brand grow is the rich customer service that they offer as they never give excuses to their deliveries.

As they say, news travel fast, it is to this reputation that has earned Hatiperi contracts and collaborations with different people and companies including the Zimbabwean music icon Jah Prazyah drawing everyone interest in yearning for a design from the same brand. What has stood about the Hatiperi story is its resilience, and pursuit for excellence. Moreover, the business is largely supported by young people being one of its major objectives.

The name of the brand would say can bring an extrinsic motivation by wearing it as it can act as a source of motivation to whatever you might be facing. This works well for youth as one word becomes enough to give you that strength. It becomes a hope when you realize the Mukukuzvi team in talks of Hatipere which is something of young entrepreneurs’ not forgetting great guys like Holy Ten being getting the fashion of Hatiperi. Indeed, Hatiperi and Zimbabweans would say usasarire neku Tino says Hatiperi (don’t be left out as Tino would say Hatiperi the brand). Make an effort to grab whether a cap, hoodie, or t-shirt.

Follow them on the following:  WhatsApp +263 77 573 2235, Twitter @hatiperi_wacho.

By Fortunate Obey Mangombe.

Success Story

Hello! My name is Fortunate Obey Mangombe an entrepreneur, CEO of Probey Beauty Products, and founder of Alpha Female support group. Chief Editor of Me Today Digital Magazine.

I’m here to share my business journey with you. I will give you a brief history of me.

I grew up with my parents in Kadoma and for some reasons they didn’t believe in letting me go away from them, ndisu taigara mumba, no friends no visiting just church, school then home, which resulted in me running away from home (ndichitizira) just so I can move away from home. I longed for freedom.

I thought after I eloped I would then leave the man and stay on my own but well life isn’t that simple. I went ahead and got 3 kids and the man was possessive in his way; I wasn’t given that liberty to explore the world. I became a kept woman again I wasn’t allowed to go anyway until I decided to leave. This time I was 25, with 3 kids not knowing what life is all about. I was all over… “getting over divorce, finding myself, and discovering how the world works.”

I discovered kuti agh kune mafaro, nice places to travel, mafaro, etc but I had no money. I tried finding work as a maid it didn’t happen. Worked in a bar, it was harder than I thought. I tried buying and selling, I was duped and I was like maybe I should go to South Africa where everyone is going but my mum said: “no go back to school”. I did and after that, I did a course in culinary arts, I wanted to be the best chef there is but unfortunately, I didn’t succeed in that. Eventually, I made my way to SA, and oh my I faced reality. It wasn’t easy there I was barely surviving at one point I was about to go stay under the bridge. I then got a job as a kitchen assistant in a supermarket it was during that time I decided to get spiritual help to find myself and heal.

We worked from 5 am to 3 pm.  I had to work up at 3.30 to get to work on time. As I was working, I asked myself why not put this effort into my own business? I will be as successful as the people I work with. I started preparing to buy my kitchen equipment, unfortunately, I lost my job. But from the long working hours in the supermarket kitchen that destroyed my cooking passion, I was tired.

I visited back home here in Zimbabwe and I was in a kombi I noticed something is different, it was stuffy and smelly then I learned one thing in South Africa, the people always smell nice, even the lowest of them there know that you ought to have a roll-on and deodorant.

How I started

I was thinking I need to do something as I relocate a home, and I was thinking it will be nice to have a fashion line then, I thought of my new obsession that fragrance and scents. I decided to have a fragrance line and started researching online perfume schools but they were expensive. So, I scratched that, thought of doing a car wash (state of the art) no one from this side wanted to help me or rather partner with me, and then decided to just come home. I sold some of the property I had in South Africa, took the money, and came back. I tried doing events that weren’t successful, tried buying and selling again then before I knew it the money is gone and left with a little. One day I was browsing through Facebook and boom, saw an advert for online perfume training then I felt God is speaking to me. I joined, learned and we came up the 8 of us to try and start a company.

 Achievements

With the 8 of us, only 5 managed to bring money together and we purchased our 1st batch of perfumes. 3 of us managed to register a company, I was happy.  Problems came one left and it was 2 of us and we became best of friends more like sisters, we became one, we managed to start a poultry project and boom the love of money and outside influence came between us, I walked away with nothing and started all over again at least I had learned a lot from the previous partnership, I knew how to correct the mistakes.  

I managed to start Probey Beauty Products, I registered, opened a bank account did the tax clearance then my finances ran out. I had to invest in the business and I managed to go to South Africa to do my purchasing. Just as I finished with manufacturing lockdown happened. My product includes: Bubble bath and washing gel, Body lotion for both men and women, Roll on, Perfume, Essential oils like Carrot oil, Turmeric oil, lemon oil, orange oil, and Rosewater

Challenges

Some of the challenges were:

• Having men asking for sexual favors in return for a connection has been my biggest challenge so far.
• It seems it’s hard in Zimbabwe to get a small shop.
•  Hard to get investors to help you grow in business.
• People in society don’t believe in black entrepreneurs they don’t believe we can do better than imported products they would rather go to the shop then give u a chance.

My goals

• To be able to supply in big supermarkets
• To have a shop
• To be in a cycle of businesspeople network cycle

From other people’s stories here I’m learning to persevere, to be courageous. The lessons helped me improve my mentality, manage my finances, and that networking matters. And the chance to advertise and meet like-minded people

Probey Beauty Products

Call. 0771926581/0783770087

WhatsApp. 0713111534/0777033265

Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/ProbeyBeautyProducts/