By Lefa Monakedi
A young entrepreneur has found a way to continue bringing light to his community through his business. Makatu Tshivula is a 25-year-old from Soweto, who started a candle manufacturing company in 2021. “The Light Candles is a premium and fast-growing candle brand in South Africa that manufactures all kinds of candles that serve to bring light in every household,” said Tshivula. The company started operating immediately after Tshivula had left his previous job where he worked as a candle manufacturer for six months.
It is in the heart of Soweto, two minutes away from Maponya Mall and has three full-time employees and two part-time employees. He told Vutivi News that the business had a lot of foot traffic because of its location. He social media and word of mouth as the backbone for marketing his company. When asked who his target market was, Tshivula emphasised that his candles were for all types of occasions, therefore, his target market was everyone who needed a candle.
The company manufactures scented candles, birthday candles, tealight candles, wood wick candles and paraffin wax candles. Although he has seen growth in his company, there had been struggles that kept Tshivula continuously on his toes strategising how to keep his customers satisfied, improve his products, extend his reach, and work on new ways to structure his company and serve the community.
To help overcome some of the challenges, the young entrepreneur emphasised the importance of having a mentor and learning more about business. This was because having knowledge about a product was not enough until you understood the business environment.
In the eyes of many, the company is relatively new, however; Tshivula already has big dreams for his business. “We are currently fully operational at our physical location and on online platforms including Uber Eats. However; our main goal remains to venture into the retail space,” Tshivula said. The Light Candles is available on social media platforms @thelghtcandles.
