What Farrarmere fashionista Courtney Hodgson (25) started as a school project has morphed into a business that celebrates South Africa’s rich colloquial culture.
Hodgson’s business, Kiffkak, puts a nostalgic spin on these words and phrases that grew from different tongues, creating meanings that need no explanation.
From expressions such as ‘eina!’, ‘eish!’ and ‘now-now’, as well Benoni’s favourite, ‘howzit boet’ embroidered on t-shirts, bucket hats and hoodies or inked on coffee mugs, Hodgson’s brand celebrates this colloquial diction that united us in our diversity.
“In South Africa, we are so divided. We don’t realise how special and intertwined we are. Kiffkak is a celebration of our culture and a recognition of the Ubuntu within us,” she said.
The creative conceptualised this idea in 2017 as a student at Open University in Irene but never envisaged it would grow into a cultural celebration. After varsity, she worked for an illustration company in Pretoria for two years but quit in 2021 to follow her passion.
“Kiffkak urges you to dig deeper within yourself to find not only the differences between us but also the similarities. I think if we could start having more open conversations as young people, we could change the narrative of this country.”
Growing up, she could not identify with a single culture. Her parents are from Britain and although her upbringing was conservative, the lens through which she sees the world was shaped in her formative years at Ashbury Primary School in Crystal Park.
As the only white learner in her class, she realised she was not the only one battling identity issues through conversations and engagements with her black classmates.
“I couldn’t identify with a single culture, but so are most black people I grew up with. Some have a Mosotho mother and a Zulu father and they try to find their way in between,” she said.
Used to sporting cornrows and eating ‘amakip-kip’ and ‘ikota’ with her black friends at primary school, at Benoni High and university, she was shocked to learn the culture and lingo were different.
Armed with the only tool that unites South Africans besides sports, the South African slang, she created a brand that celebrates the uniqueness that makes ‘Saffas’ special.
“The only way to change things is to engage with people different from you. Find yourself in spaces where you meet different people. If we could start engaging with each other’s cultural practices and learning more about each other, only good things can come out of that.”
Her products range from clothes to deco items and stickers, all celebrating South Africans’ creativity and funny bones.
“They are affordable and a reminder of our childhood. For every purchase, you get a bunch of Chappies chewing gum with your order and a lucky packet with stickers inside, a reminder of the sticker books we used to collect at school,” she said.
Kiffkak cares
Hodgson firmly believes in women’s empowerment and uplifting young people.
Instead of outsourcing her services, Camilla Hussey, owner of Bits ‘n Bobbins, does her embroidery locally.
She’s also partnered with the NPO Ladles of Love, and together they have raised funds to make over 3 000 lunch boxes for needy schoolchildren.
“It is important to give while the brand is growing. Once we have shops, I want a section where there will be a graduates’ programme,” she said.
Already with a huge social media following, with customers across the country, her long game is to move the business out of her mother’s study and open a chain of stores that would resonate with South Africans.
“I also want to get into the Forbes 30 under 30 and the Mail and Guardian’s 200 young South African lists.”
To find out more about Kiffkak, go to www.kiffkak.com.
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