08 Aug 2017

We are living in tough times where most youths are lost or sucked into a treacherous lifestyle all in the name of putting bread on the table.

But Mabedi Gaesianelwe of Maun chose an earnest living.

The 33-year-old business man started his clothing label Agape Luv Designs in the year 2003. Like many young people, he faced hurdles along the way.

“My mother died when I was doing Standard IV.

She was the sole bread-winner. Losing her at a tender age was really devastating for me.

It affected me in many ways than one. Nonetheless my grandmother took me in and raised me in a loving home,” said Gaesianelwe.

After completing his Junior Certificate at Moeti Junior Secondary School, Gaesianelwe searched for means to fend for himself. From 2002 to 2003 he found a job in his uncle’s company, Stacrony Electricals, where he worked as an electrician.
 

With no formal training, observation and a knack to learn helped him to carry out this job diligently.

However, when his search for other menial jobs in and around Maun proved unfruitful, in a heat of a moment, an idea struck him; it was time to open his own company.

In 2003 the brand Agape Luv Designs was born. But it started operating in the year 2013. The company currently has three workers.

The concept behind the name ‘Agape’ (God’s love) was simply derived from Gaesianelwe’s strong Christian background. Growing up, he was a devoted member of Lutheran church and he deems Christianity guided him to the light and preserved him from other calamities of life like peer pressure and other social ills.

‘‘I named this clothing brand Agape after seeing what God passed me through.

My past life was full of turmoil and disappointments.

The death of my parent, unemployment and other pressures of life almost misguided me, but through it all, the love of God kept me,” he said.

The energetic businessman highlighted that the main objective of the a company was to endorse Christianity to the youth as a whole.

Gaesianelwe deemed Christianity as a lifestyle, but most people, especially the youth think it is a hard life.

They associate it with bondage and suppression.

That is one of the main reasons he wanted to incorporate all these aspects in their clothing merchandise.

The clothing brand makes products such as sweaters, hoodies, head gear, T-shirts and they are later to re-brand and make an official launch in 2017.

Each clothing will represent every season that is summer, winter and spring.

Agape Luv designs uses embroidery, which is quality assured and one Tshepiso Robert of Siso Gallery in Maun, is the one behind embroidering.

The embroidery incorporates three assorted colours, which are red, blue and black.

They all have a solicited meaning in Christianity.

Red represents the blood of Jesus that was shed for our redemption, blue represents the Holy Spirit that guides us and black simply means people were saved from darkness and redeemed into light.

Gaesianelwe compaimed that the support in Maun was still lacking, but the clothing brand had received a warm reception in the southern parts of the country, more especially, Gaborone.

The company’s sale representative, Sekano Mosidi noted that tertiary students are their number one supporters as they are in with the times and trends.

Surprisingly, the religion is making waves amongst these young people, which is impressive.

Other marketing strategies include social media. The brand has a facebook page called Agape Luv Designs as well as a Whatssup group, where clients can give out input and suggestions about the brand.

Another x-factor about Gaesianelwe is that he wears his brand on a daily basis as part of a marketing strategy and people are always in awe of his swag and distinct style.

Gaesianelwe explained that the company purchases t-shirts in the United Kingdom through a friend of his.

Other merchandises like sweaters and hoodies are supplied by factories in Gaborone.

Gaesianelwe’s future aspirations is to see growth in his company and he wants to be the number one supplier of Christian merchandise as well as an extension in his products, including branding staff like water bottles, necklaces and tracksuits.

He wants to sell all these in his own boutique.

Like any other business, Agape Luv Designs faces challenges on a daily basis.

The main issue is transportation.

It is a tedious process to supply clients in far-off places like Gaborone and other parts of the country.

“Some clients purchase on credit at the end they are not willing to pay on time and this highly affects orders and stock-take,” noted Gaesianelwe.

Buying supplies from Gaborone is also expensive and inconvenient.

The businessman explained with concern that if there was a supplies chain of this sort in Maun things would be much easier.

Another setback is that he does not have any machines of his own and this also affects profit. Nonetheless, he is saving up to buy machinery.

Despite all these challenges, the business is doing fairly well and if all goes well, Gaesianelwe would love to make a contribution and support people with disabilities and those in need.

Social responsibility is equally important to him.

“Life with no Christ has no meaning. If one does not have Christ they end up living anyhow.

That is why most people who turn away from God end up indulging in dangerous lifestyles.

That is all we are trying to preach through our merchandises and hopefully the youth will join the movement,” said Gaesianelwe. BOPA