WE FIND OUT WHY MOKGADI MABELA LEFT HER CORPORATE JOB TO PRESERVE HER FAMILIES’ BUSINESS OF MAKING AUTHENTIC HONEY

The Insider SA met with female beekeeper Mokgadi Mabela to find out more about the delicate art of working with nature to extract so much goodness from so little.

Mokgadi Mabela is an inspiring South African who took the brave step of leaving the corporate world behind to return to her family’s business of making authentic raw honey.

Having grown up in Limpopo, her father is a beekeeper. Needless to say Mokgadi’s very familiar with honey, yet had no intention of going into beekeeping.

“Once I completed my degree I started working in corporate, and while there I realised that people were not consuming what I thought was honey. Well at least not the honey that I grew up having or that my father was making. As a result I decided to share some of my father’s honey with them and then everybody just wanted more of this honey. I started selling my fathers honey to them but soon the demand grew so much that he couldn’t keep up with the orders, and then introduced me to some of the beekeepers in his network who at the time had no access to formal markets. When that ran out he decided it was time to get a few of my own beehives so that I secure my own supply,” shares Mokgadi.

It started with one and has since expanded to a brand called Native Nosi, that Mokgadi founded in 2015 and owns just over 300 beehives to produce honey and assist farmers with pollination services.

With Mokgadi as the boss lady, her sister on sales, her dad as the mentor and her husband doubling as delivery and handyman, it truly is a family run business.

We are now selling one to two tonnes of honey a month, and have since opened an emporium where their products are sold and beekeeping master classes are hosted.

“Considering the demand for our product, we realised that it was no longer conducive for us to only operate as an online shop. The emporium makes it more accessible for people to interact with our products, brand and our team,” says the entrepreneur. “We plan to expand our product line going forward, scale, become available in more strategic places that meet our client needs and hopefully expand beyond our counties borders,” adds Mokgadi.

With their offering continuing to grow, including with exciting infused honey’s, they’re surely on their way to international success.

CONNECT WITH NATIVE NOSI

CONNECT WITH NATIVE NOSI