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02 January 2020
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Story Valentino Ndaba
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Photo Anja Aucamp
Refilwe Xaba, the founder and CEO of Glolooks.
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.
“Month of Compassion”
2011-05-24
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Hundred roses were planted in front of our Main Building
Photo: Duard Grobbelaar
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The Health and Wellness Centre at our university recently planted roses on the Main Campus in memory of people who passed away in the past year due to some illnesses and other personal issues.
Each rose represented 2 550 South Africans who have passed away and 100 roses were planted in front of the Main Building on our Main Campus. There were 51 red roses which represented deaths due to HIV, 14 yellow roses for those who passed away due to ischemic heart disease, 13 white roses for deaths caused by stroke, 11 orange roses for deaths caused by turbeculosis and 11 pink roses for deaths caused by interpersonal violence.
The rose garden managed to draw a lot of attention and people, many of which were members of our own staff and several students, actually took time from their busy schedules to have a look at its spectacular beauty.