Beauty in Bordeaux
BORDEAUX – Afrika Tikkun's hair and beauty programme uplifts women from all backgrounds.
The development of a particular skill should be of the utmost importance to an individual. It is through this process of evolution that new opportunities arise, and best of all, the dreams of one day having your business becomes more tangible.
Non-profit organisation, Afrika Tikkun has a Hair and Beauty Empowerment Programme, that has made it possible for women like sisters Nontuli and Karabo Yanta, as well as Thabelo Mudzunga and Lesego Mahlangu to one day, see their dreams of owning their own beauty salons become a welcome reality. The organisation runs a three-month programme where the women are taught the skills of styling hair and nails. By year’s end, this programme looks to have positively impacted the lives of about 240 women from varying townships.
On this particular day, at a Bordeaux-based beauty salon, the four women showcased the beauty skills they had acquired on one another in hopes that the salon owner could see their skill, and hire them.
Coordinator of the programme, Shaun Unterslak said the purpose of this programme is to find meaningful employment for the women. He added that they had just recently started placing women at various salons and many women have gone on to work for themselves through the programme. “The hair industry is the third-largest industry in the townships,” he said.
Unterslak explained that they focus on women who might not have a matric certificate, are young mothers and those who have become head of households at a young age. Their aim is to help ensure they give women skills that help them earn above-average incomes. “The nice thing about the beauty industry is that these ladies can put their babies on their back and still be able to work,” he said, adding that one can still be an attentive mother, while still growing and building oneself. “Another advantage is this industry can give you good money, which means these ladies can go back and get their matric certificates or even choose to study further.”
For the Yanta sisters, this is a dream opportunity came true. They both have a passion for beauty and although they heard about the programme by chance, they knew it was the once-in-lifetime opportunity they could not pass up. “My experience of the programme was lovely, I learned so much while I was there,” said Nontuli.
For Karabo, her fascination with the industry started years ago but because of limited funding, her dreams were slow to be realised. “I didn’t even know how to do cornrows, but now I do,” shared Karabo.
A recent graduate from the University of Venda with a BSc degree in recreation and leisure studies, Thabelo found herself at home, without a job, “I heard about this opportunity and decided to grab it with both hands, I now see some light.”
Thabelo hopes to open her salon one day and give jobs to others like her.
Lesego’s love for hair started when she little and would see her aunt braiding people’s hair, “I would recommend this programme to all girls.”
All four women echoed the same sentiments, that one day they hope to own their own businesses. Before that can happen, they can be proud that their skill was so great, the salon owner hired them all to work there.
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