When Inga Mdunyelwa was just 10, she watched closely as her mother ground mealies on a round rock which had been used by generations of women before her, but little did she know that one day she would run a company that did the exact same thing – only on a far larger scale.
Fast-forward 13 years and Mdunyelwa, now 23, of Flagstaff is the director of maize milling company Owethu Trading and the Eastern Cape department of rural development & agrarian reform’s 2018 female entrepreneur of the year in the province.
Joining the company as an employee in the human resources department in 2013 when it was established, Mdunyelwa quickly worked her way up to become a co-owner with Zanele Makabane and a director of a company that supplies major retailers in the province.
What started as a small startup in the village of Mangquzu in rural Flagstaff where neighbours paid a small fee to have their maize ground, has since blossomed and now makes more than 26 deliveries monthly to a single Shoprite store in the area.
“When we started we were simply grinding mealies that people would bring in.
“We then decided to move our business to town and started to supply Boxer Superstores,” Mdunyelwa said.
The company today supplies the popular Pondoland Umgubo Wesintu, a maize product, to 82 Shoprite stores, 28 SPAR stores and several Cambridge Superstores in KwaZulu-Natal.
On being crowned the female entrepreneur of the year in Komani last Thursday, Mdunyelwa said the win had caught her by surprise.The award ceremony is aimed at encouraging women in the agriculture, forestry and fisheries sector to ensure food security, create jobs, contribute towards economic growth and alleviate poverty through their businesses.
Mdunyelwa walked away with R375,000. This was in addition to a R30,000 prize she had earlier won while competing at a regional level in Tsolo.
Mdunyelwa said she had taken a chance when she applied for the competition.
“I was honestly taking a chance because I thought I was competing against very competent women, but I am glad because that chance has yielded amazing results.
“I can’t even explain how I felt when they announced that I had won. I did not believe it and I suspect my face was blank at the time.”
Mdunyelwa said Owethu’s road to success had not been without challenges.
She listed among these the company’s need for transportation. Mdunyelwa said the single truck the company owned had grown old. This resulted in the department hiring trucks to make deliveries.
“But with this money we are going to buy a truck and help solve our problems,” she said.
The mother of one said she would use some of the money to encourage youngsters in her village to get involved in agriculture.
“It really breaks my heart to see people in my village either sell their land or just not do anything with it. I want to hold talks and get them involved just to spark an interest,” Mdunyelwa said.