Khanya’s story on… a sustainable way to build aspirational African brands of the future
- DNA-Business
- Mar 27
- 5 min read
Raised by parents deeply committed to community development—a mother who was a developmental practitioner empowering cooperatives and a father who was a pastor and theological educator trained under the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu—Khanya was destined to embody the principles of empowerment and liberation. Growing up during the 1980s, a turbulent period in South Africa’s history, and with parents actively involved in the South African Council of Churches (SACC), she was immersed in an environment rich with diverse perspectives. This exposure to individuals from varied backgrounds created a melting pot of perspectives that profoundly shaped her worldview and inspired her vision for the role she sought to play in society.
“The times and context I was brought up in definitely gave me a profound sense of certainty about why I am here: I have always seen my purpose as a social responsibility to give back to society, driven not by a self serving pursuit but by a commitment to meaningful action and positive change.”
After earning her Bachelor’s Degree in Social Sciences, Khanya began her career in the NGO sector at The Novalis Ubuntu Institute, which provides holistic education programs for adult learners working in disadvantaged communities. She later joined The Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation, a multidisciplinary institute dedicated to preventing violence, healing its effects, and fostering sustainable peace. The organisation’s post-apartheid transition model influenced conflict resolution efforts across Africa—from Zimbabwe to Rwanda—sparking Khanya’s passion for Pan-African impact. Each step in her career further exposed her to human rights movements and strengthened her commitment to creating meaningful change.
As her career progressed, Khanya came to learn about the positive potential of business particularly in certain areas where companies were stepping in to address state neglect. This sparked her entrepreneurial impulse, inspiring her to explore the right channels for her very own impact initiatives. Serendipitously, a friend pursuing his PhD in the BioTech space, left him with an abundance of unused honey, prompting Khanya's mother’s suggestion to “Find a gogo (an elder) who still makes ‘iQhilika’ (fermented honey drink) to teach you how to use that honey!”. While he went on to establish a successful mead manufacturing business, Khanya had a different vision, aligned with her deep affiliation for development models she saw this as an opportunistic moment to solve a bigger, more meaningful challenge: bringing sustainable alcoholic beverages to market.
“I was struck by the long and divergent history of mead across the African continent, from the Tej of Ethiopia to the Muratina of Kenya, and even the Koi San’s fermented honey mix in Southern Africa known as ‘Karri’. I was excited about reacquainting myself with this drink and equally eager to enter the spirits market so that I could use the procurement of the botanicals as my means of getting small scale farmers into a more lucrative supply chain.”
As she explored the history of mead making, she uncovered what made this drink so special, a unique beverage whose production relied on the arrival of seasonal rains to trigger honey fermentation. At the time she was in the thick of Cape Town's worst drought in over a century, and immediately appreciated the water-conserving properties of ingredients like honey, which required no irrigation during production. Although convinced she had the makings for a sustainability driven business, one that would be kind to both the environment and the small scale farmers, Khanya needed the business acumen to get it off the ground. To address this, she enrolled with Startup School Africa whose program would enable her to work through the process of building the business from developing the right business model, to supplier mapping and financial planning. To her surprise, the program culminated in a pitch competition, which she won, allowing her to turn her plans into reality with the funding received. Her first range, Matawi, was soon after brought to market meeting the exact standards she had planned for.
Onwards and upwards? Not yet. Covid-19 hit and Khanya was forced into a time of pause, using this opportunity to iron out her business plan and develop a resilient model that matched her entrepreneurial aspirations.
“It was a really beneficial time for me to think about how I wanted to grow the business. One of the things that became clear to me was that I needed to develop and introduce enterprise development processes because I needed retail to be my friend.”
Khanya continued to work out what she considered to be the dealmakers and deal breakers for her business. She entered into a joint venture with two distilleries, which enabled her to remove the middle man in terms of manufacturing and regain control over the people she wanted to bring into the sustainability recipe. Matawi now stands as a prominent brand within the expansive framework of that joint venture, aptly named The African Liquor Company. Khanya pioneers sustainable spirit innovation, harnessing Africa's diverse botanicals. From agave for tequila to rare desert flora for whiskies, and palm and amadumbe for vodka, she reimagines the category with climate-resilient ingredients. This approach, proven with Matawi, paves the way for continued range expansion.
“We are seeing a lot more dramatic climate events, floods, droughts, fires, yet we are still conducting ourselves and living as if the effects of climate change are something of the future. There is a call we are all going to have to make. We don't expect our consumers to become environmental activists but if you can give them something that tastes just as good or even better and it has a more positive impact, then the choice is easy.”
Khanya’s vision is now much more extensive than the small homegrown story that she started with Matawi. As the African continent turns more to internal trade, her vision is now part of that overarching story. Creating aspirational brands for young Africans growing up in a sustainably conscious society, one that is embracing African culture and heritage through fashion, music, food, hospitality and more. Khanya explores how we can build businesses in ways that future-proof our society so that we can experience a more aspirational Africa in our very own lifetime.
“The advice I would give anyone who shares this vision for Africa is the same advice I received but at the time wasn't brave enough to take on, till now: JUST START. The biggest lesson we learn is through doing because until then, we simply do not know WHAT to ask. You don't know what you don't know until you are in the business of DOING. It’s about having the courage to start and to keep building for the long term.”
“Solving niche challenges Founders face”.