Local businessman creates a first for SA

In the face of adversary, an Edenglen businessman has taken it upon himself to bring about change and make a difference.

To do this, this tattoo studio owner Andrew King designed and produced an item of clothing that hopes to slow the spread of Covid-19.

Andrew’s design sees a mask and shirt fused together.

“Inspiration for the design actually came from my daughter, and me wanting to make sure she never lost her mask.

“Often, I asked her where her mask was and on many occasions, she wouldn’t know.”

Fortunate to have a creative imagination, Andrew designed some rough sketches and asked a tattoo artist to create a more professional design.

“In my opinion, prevention is the only cure at this stage.

“The mask portion of the shirt is three layers thick and can have an additional fourth layer, for high-risk individuals.The fourth layer is created from air conditioning filters used in hospitals and airliners.

“When the design was registered I was informed that the design I created was the first of its kind, internationally.”

During the process of producing the shirt, Andrew’s biggest fear was the fact that the product would be registered and designed before he had designed the product.

He said he had many sleepless nights thinking about that.

“It is a proudly South African idea and product; the whole item is produced here in SA.

“I want people to take notice that this design is from South Africa, from right here in the East Rand.”

Andrew strongly believes that community members need to think out of the box to find solutions, especially now during the pandemic.

“Often, citizens of a country put too much hope in the leaders of a country to find a solution .

“Although the situation is new to us, if we put our minds to it, we can all help and find a possible solution.”

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As a father himself Andrew believes his design is better than a normal mask because children are less likely to fiddle with the mask or lose it.

Since designing and producing the shirt Andrew has made donations of them to SOS Security and to Roxer Academy in Benoni.

Once the product becomes more established Andrew hopes to do some charity work, especially among schools and learners in need.

“I want the focus of what I am doing to be society, schools and sport.

“The virus disrupts education and many children don’t have access to online learning so I want to help them be able to continue learning for the future of our country.

“Although charity starts at home it is truly a blessing to be able to pay it forward.”

For more information, visit www.mandkbeforeink.com