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UFS Student entrepreneurs paving their way to success

13 March 2019 | Story Zama Feni | Photo Zama Feni

Career fair — UFS BCom (Marketing) student, Thandokazi Kiviet, who works part time for fellow master’s student Refilwe Xaba’s hair-product company, Glolooks, shows off their products to visitors at the Annual Careers Fair last week.

Budding student entrepreneurs from the University of the Free State presented their creative displays during the first part of the university’s 2019 Annual Careers Fair at the Callie Human Hall last week.

The first leg of the fair was in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, with more than 15 companies exhibiting their products and explaining to students their business operations, career prospects, and employment opportunities.

Students’ construction business gets off the ground

Three ladies, Mannini Setai (master’s in Law), Refilwe Mogole (PhD in Chemistry), and Nthabiseng Molejane (honours in the Humanities) registered their company, Ahang Amalmagate Trading, in 2016 and have been operating since late 2017.

Mogole said they are currently operating from a backyard in Parys, but they have a manager on site who deals with the technical aspects of their business and runs the daily operations.

“We managed to buy a brick-making machine, which enabled us to make up to 1 000 bricks per day; at this stage, we provide bricks to private homeowners,” she said.

The ladies said winning three competitions last year gave them a financial boost that aided them greatly; these included the Nampak Entrepreneurship Competition, the Free State Department of Economic, Small Business Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs Tabalaza Pitching Programme, as well as the UFS Directorate for Research Development’s business pitching competition.

“As a result of these competitions, we managed to save some cash to buy ourselves a brick-making machine,” said Setai, adding that they are using social networks to market their product.

Hair-product business gives hope

Another student business stall was that of Glolooks – an emerging hair-products company established by UFS student, Refilwe Xaba, who has just finished her master’s programme in Entrepreneurship at the UFS. “The biggest challenge is access to the markets, but my business is doing fairly well here in Bloemfontein; our use of online media and social networks to market our products is keeping us there,” said Ms Xaba. She said she has just opened an ethnic hair salon in Westdene.

Taking it slowly, but surely

Another UFS student was Anet Matakala of Nettah Organics (Law degree) who makes organic products such as green tea, bath salts, chocolate coffee, cannabis butter, etc., from food-based ingredients. “It’s not an easy road, but step by step, we are getting there,” she said.

The last student was Keagan Nkwaira, who started a clothing company named ‘Weather’ last year. “What drove me to starting this venture was a passion for design and a need to raise cash. Business hasn’t been good so far, but I will have to find marketing initiatives that will get my work to the potential customers,” he said.

Career fairs benefit students

Head of Career Services, Belinda Janeke, said there will be four more career fairs catering for the Faculties of Law and Natural and Agricultural Sciences during the course of the year, and two general career fairs in May and August.

“The career fairs help to connect our students with the world of work, it helps to broaden the horizons for students because they can enquire about the products or services provided by the respective companies, and it can also create job and internship opportunities,” she said.

News Archive

Dean of the Faculty of Law delivers farewell lecture

2013-12-04

Prof Johan Henning, Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of the Free State (UFS), delivered his farewell lecture during an event attended by distinguished guests from law circles in Bloemfontein, staff from the faculty, as well as family and friends.

The topic of his farewell lecture was: From leonine to universal partnerships. This theme was also the focus of his inaugural lecture and his later research. “It was a privilege to have been part of the development of universal partnership law,” Prof Henning said.

During the event, Prof Henning was honoured by colleagues, as well as members of the law profession, for his contribution to the academy. Prof Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector of the UFS, thanked Prof Henning for his part in preparing a new generation of academics for the future.

Prof Elizabeth Snyman-Van Deventer from the Department of Mercantile Law, described Prof Henning as someone with an excellent knowledge of history, especially with regard to the Anglo-Boer War and the World Wars. “He is also one of only a few academics of which four postgraduate students became professors. He has lots of empathy with other people and, despite his long list of academic achievements, he is a very humble man. Two of his outstanding characteristics are his humanity and his modesty,” said Prof Snyman-Van Deventer.

Judge Faan Hancke, former chairperson of the UFS Council and Judge of the Supreme Court, said Prof Henning is a multi-faceted person. “He is an incredible academic who has published widely and is the author of several textbooks. He is also editor of a number of journals and serves on the editorial board of several publications. I have great admiration for his academic excellence and his absolute knowledge of partnership law. He is the best in South Africa and is also highly regarded internationally in this aspect of the law (he was, among others, director of the Centre for Comparative Partnership and Company Law at the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies of the University of London). He is the ideal academic, who has achieved the highest rating in his specialist field of Mercantile Law in South Africa, namely a B1 received in 2012, and he is an excellent dean,” Judge Hancke said.

Prof Henning has a long association with the UFS. In 1968 he reported as a first-year student. Later, in 1974, he was appointed in the Department of Mercantile Law on a temporary basis. In 1998 he was appointed as Dean of the Faculty of Law. Some of the highlights in his career include his appointment as African representative of CIDOEC, Jesus College, Cambridge, and becoming the first South African being awarded an honorary fellowship to the Society of Advanced Legal Studies in Brittain, as well as the American Order of the Coif.

Prof Henning will continue his partnership with the university in 2014, acting as dean and continuing his research.

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