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02 January 2020
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Story Valentino Ndaba
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Photo Anja Aucamp
Refilwe Xaba, Senior Assistant Officer in Entrepreneurship Development at the UFS Centre for Development Support, is the founder and CEO of Glolooks. This Bloemfontein-based company manufactures and supplies an organic, natural hair product range.
When she first developed the products, they were for personal use. Xaba evolved from an intrapreneur to an entrepreneur. She innovated a personal solution into a booming business idea. It was only in May 2016 that she decided to go into business, following growing interest in the way she maintained her hair. “I officially started in-depth research in October 2015, after years of making concoctions for myself.”
Business and books
Xaba reckons that a research background is beneficial for growing a business such as Glolooks that has a huge technical aspect. She is currently pursuing her PhD in Entrepreneurship with a focus on marketing and is planning to use her business as a case study.
Her undergraduate, honours, and master’s studies, which she completed at Kovsies, contributed to equipping Xaba with skills to grow her business. She believes in balancing education and business. “I have always been commerce-orientated. If there is a problem to be fixed, I fix it. However, people are at the centre of my heart.”
Growing Glolooks
In 2019, Glolooks opened a salon in Westdene, where customers can receive a holistic experience above and beyond merely purchasing the product. Xaba says this is one of the ways her business is being innovative when it comes to creating relationships with customers.
UFS honours five alumni
2009-09-08
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The University of the Free State (UFS) honoured five of its alumni during the Kovsie Alumni Awards that took place on the Main Campus in Bloemfontein this past Friday evening. From the left are: Prof. Johan Grobbelaar, senior professor in the university's Department of Plant Sciences who received the Kovsie Alumni National Management Award; Mr Gert Grobler (South Africa's ambassador in Japan) who was named the 2008/09 Kovsie Alumnus of the Year; Prof. Jonathan Jansen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS; Dr Gert Marincowitz (RUDASA's Rural Physician of the Year) who received the Kovsie Alumni Cum Laude Award; Prof. André Venter, Chief Specialist of Paediatrics and Child Health at the UFS who received the Kovsie Alumni National Management Award, and Sekoati Tsubane (Kabelo in 7de Laan) who received the Kovsie Alumni Cum Laude Award.
Photo: Dries Myburgh |