By Buziwe Nocuze
• Noluvuyo Mkhafu says losing her job left her battling stress and depression until she started selling muffins, scones and koeksisters.
• The mother of three now supports four children through her small baking business after teaching herself the skill by watching a colleague.
When Noluvuyo Mkhafu lost her job, she thought she was losing much more than a salary.
The 37 year old mother from Eersterivier says the stress became so bad she feared it would kill her.
“Losing my job affected me emotionally. I was overwhelmed by stress and depression, and I could see that I was at risk of a stroke,” she said.
After months of searching for work without success, Mkhafu decided she had only one choice.
She turned on her oven.
Today, the skill she taught herself by watching a colleague has become the only thing standing between her family and hunger.
“I decided to start a business selling muffins, scones and koeksisters, a skill I taught myself that has now become both my income and therapy,” she said.
Mkhafu used to work as a general worker at a waste company.
Long before that, she picked up baking tips from a colleague without ever imagining the skill would one day save her.
“I didn’t know that one day I would need it to survive,” she said.
Her small business is slowly growing.
She sells a five litre container of scones for R150, muffins for R200 and koeksisters for R100.
Customers who need deliveries around Cape Town townships pay an extra R50.
Every sale helps put food on the table.
“The money I make is helping me because now I can sleep knowing that my kids will have lunch when they go to school,” she said.
Mkhafu is raising her three children as well as her late brother’s child.
Although she still applies for jobs, she says baking has lifted a huge weight from her shoulders.
“Ever since I started two months ago, I have less stress because I don’t worry about money for electricity, lunch and other basic things,” she said.
One of her loyal customers, Nobuntu Dyilisha, says she believed in Mkhafu long before the business started.
“I have been supporting her before she decided to make it a business. I would buy ingredients and give them to her to bake for me. I am glad that she’s taking it this far and actually using it to support her family. Her prices are reasonable, and she sells fresh muffins and scones. I will continue supporting her,” she said.
Mkhafu’s story mirrors the reality facing millions of South Africans.
According to the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey, the country’s unemployment rate stood at 32.7% in the first quarter of 2026.
Young people remain the hardest hit, with six out of every 10 people aged 15 to 24 unable to find work.
For Mkhafu, every tray of fresh muffins is proof that hope can rise, even when life knocks you down.
Pictured above: Noluvuyo Mkhafu.
Image source: Supplied.
