1. page 52 | JULY 2015
YOUNG BUSINESS MINDS
them and places them at functions, PR
activations and fashion shows to empower
them with part-time employment.
In between all of this, she’s still found time
to do a correspondence course towards a BA in
community development. This is intended to give
her grounding for a NGO concept she’s working
on. “I give up my Saturdays to go to classes and
work after hours during the week. My courses
include business and financial management,
which has also been very helpful for operating
DeepMoon more effectively,” she says.
It’s all an intensive balancing act and she
concedes there have been occasions when she’s
been stretched to the limit. “Sometime last year,
looking after my six-month-old baby alongside
everything else I was doing simply became too
much. I even had to take my child to work a few
times. I fell very ill and my employees had to
come to the hospital to give me updates. It was
just overwhelming,” she recalls.
Matlhaku’s since prioritised her health by
taking things slower, delegating tasks and finding
a good nanny. She says her studies have taught
her to work smarter, which helps her save time
and balance things better. She now has her sights
set on growing the agency and opening the NGO,
while maintaining her DeepMoon Fashions
clients. “I hope to showcase my offerings and
network at international trade shows, with a view
to exporting my clothes overseas regularly one
day,” she says.
ANDRICA LEKGANYANE
(29), owner of Area
Group Property Services
Area Group Property Services
operates across the residential,
commercial and retail sectors,
with a focus on sales and rentals.
Lekganyane says part of her drive
to make her company succeed
stems from a need to create wider
participation in the field by getting
more of black society to invest in
property. The business is growing
steadily, but while she’s busy with the
strategic leasing consultation on two
retail developments in semi-rural
areas, brokering deals and property
management, she admits it hasn’t
always been smooth sailing.
She registered Area Group in 2007,
after being retrenched at the age of
21. She’d been juggling her studies
with working in the corporate sector
since she was 19, so she used the
retrenchment as motivation to acquire
the grounding she’d need to launch
her own venture. “I spent the next few
years working for a variety of property
companies to gain more experience,
but I was researching and raising
money for my business throughout
that period, while also studying for
my principal estate agent’s EAAB
accreditation,” she explains.
As Lekganyane’s skills and services
were her main offering, she only
needed money to develop the website
and for branding, so she started
operating as soon as she obtained
her certificate. She believes this is
part of what makes the industry
appealing and implores the youth to
consider it. “Eventually, I’d like to start
an academy that upskills young people
in property. Not enough youngsters
know about the potential of property,
so I want to get that information to
them,” she explains.
In the midst of setting up and
growing Area Group, she’s started a
BCom Honours degree in property
valuation and management this year.
It’s a full-time course, but it’s made
easier by after-hours lectures. “I’ve
gained on-the-job experience, but
studying further helps me keep abreast
of what’s new. I already feel more
familiar with the property investment
side of things and my negotiation skills
have improved,” she says.
While she relies on her
administrators and estate agents for
many things, the strategic elements of
Area Group are her sole responsibility,
so she’s had to practise careful time
management and make sacrifices.
“I’ve learnt to work smart so that
neither my academics nor my clients’
satisfaction is compromised. I’m
over-protective of Area Group and its
reputation, so I do whatever it takes
to uphold it. I often go to sleep at 2am
after ensuring everything’s in place for
the business,” she says.
She’d like her company to expand its
involvement with rural/township retail
property management and marketing
residential developments. “I’d also
like to study further and obtain my
Master’s degree as well as continue my
mentoring engagements.”
“I’ve learnt to work
smart so that neither
my academics nor my
clients’ satisfaction
is compromised.”
Photographer:TimHulme.Make-up:ZenziMasuku