LIMPOPO – Despite studying information technology software development, Shikombiso Bila from Nghezimani village outside Malamulele has opted for a career in fashion.
She said she started experimenting by making garments and took up crochet at a young age, but her business really took shape in 2017.
“I made a crochet hat, posted it on social media and people started enquiring. That is how the businesses started.”
She started designing more items, until deciding to run the business full-time.
“I grew up loving fashion and modelling so when I went to study IT, most of my friends picked up that I was passionate about fashion and advised me to enroll in a fashion course, but I went ahead with IT. Crocheting garments means expressing myself through fashion, but also taking into consideration the needs of my customers. To me it’s more than designing, I want to be part of people who will preserve the Xitsonga tradition or culture through fashion. My goal is to have a production house and produce as many products as possible so that I can cater to the international market, which also means employing many people and solving unemployment. I would like to see young girls proud and celebrating their heritage daily. I want to see young girls rocking xibelani at a mall or any other place and being proud of it,” said Bila.
She said the desire to succeed motivated her to prove to herself that following her childhood dream was indeed a good decision.
“I am motivated by seeing my customers happy with the outfits I make for them. That gives me joy and motivates me to go on. Consistency is everything. Do it over and over again until you become the best by giving 100% effort every day,” is her advice.
She confesses that though crocheting is thriving internationally, in South Africa customers still expect the products to be cheap, “but it takes a lot of hours and creativity to put together a garment”.
She says it has been an amazing journey so far and that she has dressed South African celebrities in some of her designs.
“I love it when people take my work internationally. Business needs most of my time and life is demanding too, especially as a mother. I try by all means to balance my life and my work, but the best thing is to create work hours and stick to them so that I can spend time with my family and friends,” she said.
She told CV that her family supports her immensely.
“My father is my number one supporter, and he’s also the one who pushed me to open my first shop. When I told my parents that I was going to be a designer full-time, my mom just said ‘go for it, as long as you’ll give your customers good service’, and I’ve been doing exactly that. My two sons are my inspiration, I am doing this for them so they know that success is a mindset.”
She advises young women who want to follow in her footsteps to start with what they have.
“Nobody is coming to save you, so all you need is a paying customer and if you get funding that’s also perfect. Otherwise, just start. Practice and try to be better every day. Find something you’re good at and focus on that, and for the rest you can hire people.”
