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Jane Zimmerman, Product Owner
 


Khumbulani

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IN DEEPEST, rural KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga, far from the cities and towns, often far from tarred roads, even electricity, several hundred women are able to put food on the table by creating objects of exquisite beauty.

The women possess traditional skills handed down to them by their mothers and grandmothers. They’re diligent, talented crafters but have no way of marketing themselves or the objects they make. For that these women trust Johannesburg-based Khumbulani Craft.

Founded in 1999, Khumbulani is a not-for-profit company employing more than a dozen dedicated people and supporting 400 women in some of South Africa’s poorest, most remote areas. The product range is astonishingly varied: ceramic and volcanic-stone pots, grass baskets, beaded and wire crafts of all descriptions, jewellery, wooden products and Christmas decorations. Traditional African craft items include decorated calabashes and walking sticks, ukhamba pots and Zulu isicholo hats. According to Khumbulani founder and executive director Jane Zimmerman, they are all beautiful and all are made to the highest quality standards.

Khumbulani emphasises sustainability, both in the way it uses natural resources and in the way its field staff develop the crafters, offering them training in product development, pricing and business development. One group produces beads from recycled glass (to produce stunning items including jewellery and beaded curtains) while woodworkers affiliated with Khumbulani use indigenous timber bought from the famous Knysna forests and certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. The name, Khumbulani, means “to remember” – a testimony to the organisation’s commitment to preserving traditional skills and culture.

“It would be almost impossible for buyers and tourists to find our crafters,” says Jane. “They’re in extremely remote areas. Directions to them would be something like, ‘Turn left at the third dirt road, then right at the big tree, cross the river, climb the hill and turn right at the top.’ We are approached by crafters through our field staff, we offer them training, provide materials, transport and market access. Without assistance these women would be excluded from the economy, not be able to earn a living and their skills would simply die out.”

Witnessing the benefits that Khumbulani is able to bring to “the poorest of the poor”, says marketing and sales manager Bonita Aita, is always a humbling experience. In the village of KwaXolo in KwaZulu-Natal, for instance, there was 100% unemployment until Khumbulani intervened. Many of the men in the area are retrenched mineworkers with few, if any, prospects for re-employment. “Seeing women feeding their children, buying them shoes, makes all the hard work incredibly worthwhile,” says Bonita. “One of our crafters recently showed us the refrigerator she had bought. She still didn’t have electricity but she had saved up for this, something she had always dreamed of owning, and was just waiting for the local authority to connect her community [to the electricity grid].”

Staging the Fifa 2010 soccer World Cup in South Africa, Jane believes, will give the country’s crafts sector a huge boost and, she hopes, “give Khumbulani the impetus to take us to the next level”. Khumbulani is planning to take full advantage of the world’s biggest sporting event. Items developed for 2010 include football-themed ceramics, beaded vuvuzelas (plastic trumpets), soccer-figurine keyring holders and beaded mineworkers’ hats in the colours of the participating teams (just one of which can take five to seven days to make).

Khumbulani liaises continuously with buyers; retailers, wholesalers and interior designers, and exhibits at major trade fairs. Thanks to its intervention, some crafters have even had the chance to travel internationally to showcase their wares. The company keeps abreast of market trends and ensures that products are stylish, contemporary and, perhaps most importantly, always in demand. 

The success of the Khumbulani business model, and the real impact the company has had on the lives of hundreds of historically disadvantaged women, has been recognised – and supported – by a range of corporates and foundations, most notably Tiger’s Eye, a subsidiary of Tourvest Holdings, which has 50 retail outlets around South Africa and has supported Khumbulani, since its inception, to the tune of over R40-million. Just one of the partners supporting the Khumbulani is TEP which, according to Jane, has helped with orders and in subsidising participation at major trade shows. “We really look forward to strengthening our relationship with TEP going forward,” adds Jane.

www.khumbulani.co.za
 
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