A soapy affair

MASERU – SOFONIA Ramatšabane, 24, is an Economics graduate from the National University of Lesotho (NUL) who has ventured into a soap production project.
He graduated from the NUL in 2017. And unlike other graduates who usually move from pillar to post in search of jobs, Ramatšabane was smart enough to start a project with small personal savings he got from the National Manpower Development Secretariat (NMDS) while still a student.

The NMDS is the biggest government programme that sponsors Basotho students in tertiary institutions. Millions of maloti are pumped into the scheme to help accomplish the mission.
Ramatšabane says soon after he graduated from the NUL, he teamed up with his brother, Moabi Ramatšabane, to form a soap production company which specialises in the production of organic glycerin soap.

Under this company, there are varieties of soaps which are produced which include rooibos wonder soap made from a South African plant called rooibos and honey bar made from honey produced in Lesotho. There are also other varieties like rice-milk soap, tea-tree oil soap and nature’s pumpkin soap.
The Ramatšabanes work as an informal entity.

“I started the business from my personal savings. I firstly studied the right way of making soap, and later met the experts to confirm the formulation of bar soap,” he says.
He says it was not easy for him to start a business on a big scale and therefore decided to start on a small-scale since he had just left school and could not raise enough money to rake in big investments.

Ramatšabane says while he was still at the university, he studied a course called Industrial Organisation, which deals with production and manufacturing.
It was this course that helped him to play his cards right as he started his business.

He says he has a passion to go beyond the manufacturing entity.
Ramatšabane says their biggest goal is to work hand-in-hand in the import substitution of soap in the country.
There are only a few companies in the country that produce soap for home use.

“Soaps are a basic need to almost every person but the majority of these soaps are imported. I then asked myself why I could not manufacture the soap if it is possible to do so,” he says.
Ramatšabane says his business gave him a headache before it could take off.
He says it was not easy to put things in order before he could see his project up and running.
“It was a little bit clumsy and everything was scattered,” he recalls.

“The most difficult part was organising oneself to make a system for our own business.”
He says business entities like this one are uncommon in Lesotho so they didn’t know what to expect.
This emerging entrepreneur argues that taking the business from the micro-entity to a larger scale was not easy.

He says the machinery that they use do not allow them to produce on a larger scale. That resulted in them compromising the production process.
Although the business is still growing, the youngster says they hope it will grow to the next level.
He says he can see some light at the end of the tunnel.

“We now know what to expect, and most importantly we know the level of demand for our products. We know what the customers want and what they do not want,” he says.
It is the dynamics of the demand and supply that will determine the growth of the Ramatšabanes.
He says they are not expecting any profits yet but are getting themselves used to the business world while at the same time building on their past mistakes.
Despite the challenges, Ramatšabane says they will not back down and will make effort to achieve their goals.

“From where we are now, we are aiming to capture decent market share in the manufacturing industry. Over 80 percent of soap in the country is imported; in that case, our goal is to work hand in hand to develop the industries that produce soap in the country and that would contribute massively to the economy of the country,” he says.
As part of their plans, Ramatšabane says they are looking forward to engaging potential investors who could contribute immensely to the growth and development of this country.
He says it is the passion for business which keeps them awake at night.

He says he is optimistic that his business will be successful and he will one day contribute significantly to curtail the unemployment crisis in Lesotho.
Research shows that youth unemployment in the country stands at 38 percent.

Refiloe Mpobole