19 Oct 2015

Very determined and focused young man, Mr Chika Chumba, who is 37 years old, believes that for a nation to be successful, self-reliance has to be upheld by each and every individual in this country.

Born and raised in Kasane, Mr Chumba went through formal school up to Junior Certificate (JC) level, which he completed in 1995 and could not proceed to senior school, therefore he had to come up with plans to sustain his livelihood.

His remedial plan was to do menial jobs in neighborhoods such as grass cutting and providing labour to some skilled workers, especially in building constructions.

He could not find a permanent and well-paying job and the money he was earning through piece jobs could not make ends meet.

Mr Chumba had to devise another strategy and what came up to his mind and through advice by families and friends was to join government programmes such as Ipelegeng and Tirelo Sechaba.

However, an inner voice kept on informing him that he has to do something for the country not the other way round.

He emphasised that people should learn to be self-reliant in order for this country to be successful in terms of improved revenue.

The idea of working under government programmes faded away from his mind because he felt that he is an entrepreneur.

He had to start something, which will at the end benefit the youth of Kasane and he brainstormed many ideas and finally believed that a hair salon is a very appropriate business to start with.

Mr Chumba stated that although he had the skills and knowledge of different haircuts, he had to acquire a relevant qualification in order to run the business successfully.

He completed a Certificate in Hair dressing and indicated that passion and his knowledge of haircuts inspired him to start a barber shop.

The budding entrepreneur had to start somewhere because he does not want to commit himself with financial institutions for loans and grants. He believes that he will succeed in his future endeavours with the little money he is saving.

In 2005, he applied for a permit at a cost of only P20 to start operating his barber shop, which is situated close to the Rural Administration Centre (RAC) where it exposes him to many customers who are usually government employees.

It is also in the centre of Kasane where there are major chain stores which attract many customers who commute daily for his service.

The business is sustainably operating very well with satisfying monthly turnovers and he pointed out that he always tries different strategies to attract customers such as the recent policy he introduced, which stipulates that a customer who cuts three times consecutively will automatically get a free fourth haircut.

This has increased the number of customers visiting the place for better business leading to more returns.

He commented that he provides excellent service with the aim to meet the needs of the price-conscious individuals who value the way their hair looks.

Mr Chumba has alluded that he provides credit to most of his usual customers and this has provided a good working relationship with them.

In some occasions, he usually provides discounts to his valued customers and further clarified that during month ends, when there are a lot of customers, he engages other youths on commission basis so that they can also put food on the table for their families.

He reiterated the fact that he only hires individuals with requisite and specialized skills in hair cutting so as to retain his customers with the provision of good quality service.

Furthermore, he indicated that providing a part time job on some occasions for these youths fulfills his main intention of doing something for the government, thus taking part in the reduction of unemployment rate in Chobe.

Sitting on a chair at Chika’s barbershop is a well shaven young man Mr Mokwadi Gaekolobe, who is 33 years of age and has just received a clean haircut.

Mr Gaekolobe indicated that he prefers cutting his hair at Chika’s place because he is good at his work and always tries by all means to satisfy his customers through his appealing customer care skills and satisfaction also emanates from his good quality state of the art machines he is currently using.

He further specified that if one needs his services on credit, he is free to negotiate terms and agreements because his main intention is to satisfy all his customers by all means.

After some few minutes, Mr John Nyambi, who is 30 years of age arrived and stated that it is his first time to come to Chika for a haircut and he was referred by a close friend who always boasts of good quality service provided at the barbershop.

 Mr Chumba emphasized that his goal will be achieved after setting up a saloon in which he hopes to permanently employ a significant number of people as it will involve a lot of business activities such as hair plaiting, cleansing of hair, manicure and others.

He stated that Bye-law and health department usually visit his place for routine inspections to check on the cleanliness and dissemination of vital information related to laws and regulations encompassing the running of the business, which he usually conforms to.

Mr Chumba indicated that although the business is running well, there are some hiccups, which negatively affects the successful operation of the business, especially some customers who do not pay their credit dues well on time.

He encouraged the youth to use their god given talents to help diversify, create employment and have an input on the growth of the economy of this country.

Also, he reiterated that self-reliance is the best medicine for ending the outcry of unemployment in the country because nowadays people rely on the government for everything. Ends