When Gugulethu Zulu started Braq Uni in 2017, she had no factory, no funding, and only two customers. What she did have was a sharp eye for fashion and a strong belief that locally made uniforms could be just as good, if not better, than imported ones.
Now, Braq Uni is a school uniform supplier and workwear manufacturer based in Brakpan, Gauteng, with clients across South Africa, and in Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Before launching Braq Uni, Gugulethu ran a fashion label called Phumi Zuloo, selling clothes at weekend markets. But everything changed when a friend approached her to supply school uniforms. At the time, there weren’t many reliable suppliers in the area. That simple request sparked an idea.
She started looking into the school uniform industry in her community and saw a big opportunity. With her fashion background, she approached the primary school she once attended and helped them redesign their uniform. That became her first retail client and the beginning of Braq Uni.
Today, the company designs, manufactures, and sells school uniforms, corporate wear, security and safety gear, sportswear and PPE (Personal Protective Equipment). They make everything locally, using South African fabrics and hiring staff from nearby communities like Brakpan and Tsakane. Braq Uni currently serves more than 30 schools.
But Braq Uni isn’t just focused on profit. Gugulethu and her team run school shoe and uniform drives, giving clothing to children who need it most. They also donate a portion of certain product sales to local schools, use fabric offcuts to make clothes for nearby charities, create jobs and skills training for people in the area – all of which helped her build strong ties with the local community and other businesses.
One of Gugu’s proudest moments was seeing her products being used outside South Africa. “For more than four years we have been supplying schools in Zambia through a company called Pride Link. I am really proud that we have clients in neighbouring countries and our designs have even appeared on local television shows.”
All of this success came despite strong competition. When Gugu first opened her shop, she was up against a uniform store that had been around for nearly 100 years. But she didn’t let that stop her. “We started with 12 shelves and big dreams. Today, we have a large share of the market – and we’re still growing.”
Gugulethu acknowledges that there is still so much more she wants to do: like open more retail stores, set up manufacturing hubs in townships, train more people in clothing production, and run her new project, “10K One Vision”, which aims to clothe 10 000 children in school uniforms.
She also hopes to continue inspiring others in the same industry and help build a strong local manufacturing network.
It’s been challenging at times,” she said. “There’s a misconception that entrepreneurship gives you instant freedom; that you can sleep in, take time off, or go on holiday whenever you like. But the reality is the opposite. I didn’t take a single holiday or day off the first three years. You work harder when it’s your name on the door,’’ she laughs.
*Braq Uni is a participant business on the SAB Foundation’s Tholoana Enterprise Programme.
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About the Author
Terrena Rathanlall is the SME Media Portfolio Manager at Fetola.
