29 Aug 2018

She carefully slides one bead into a thread, followed by the other in different colours. This marks the process of making a neck piece, a craft that Ms Tshepiso Modimoopelo has decided to pursue with passion. 

The 37-year-old makes statement neckpieces, chokers and earrings and gets inspiration from colourful pieces that she comes across among them the colourful African print materials. 

She explained that her jewellery was versatile and not restricted to anything, explaining that she used glass beads, metallic beads, pins, wooden beads, Kente, Ankara and German prints. Ms Modimoopelo of Just Fabulouz said she does not want to manufacture everyday normal jewellery. “I want to create elegant, timeless, beautiful and unique neckpieces that have a wow factor,” she said. 

Her company was started in 2013 operating from home and she said her first customers were friends who always came for more neckpieces. 

“I then opened a shop in March 2014 at BBS Mall but faced some challenges as people were not used to having a jewellery shop other than the popular ones,” she said. Just Fabulouz has three employees and production is done in Extention 4 while she does designs. 

“The price of jewellery ranges from P150 upwards and it is determined by the kind of beads used, how long it took to make it, size and decorations. Raw materials are sourced locally,” she adds. 

Furthermore, Ms Modimoopelo had resorted to making clothes out of Dashiki, Ankara and African prints with a modern twist as with time many people have shown interest and appreciated her line of business. “When it comes to making clothes, I am inspired by the young and old as they bring their uniqueness into their clothing,” she said. 

However, Ms Modimoopelo said she did not receive any professional training either in dressmaking or jewellery, but paints a picture in her mind while with clothes, she draws and sketches everything then gives to the designer as she is a full-time employee at Jwaneng. 

She said the major challenge was that people still stigmatised Botswana produced goods as they always question the quality. The other setback she said was the small population hence low demand locally. 

“However social media, referrals and loyal customers play a big role in growing my business,” she said. She thanked government for initiatives in place aimed at advancing women empowerment, adding that more could still be done to reduce the disparities. She said the community needs to be informed on the value of buying locally produced goods as it increased the demand hence creating more employment opportunities. ENDS