By Rorisang Modiba
- Starting with magwinya sales in her Pretoria neighbourhood, Mama Dee now runs two busy food outlets and employs six staff members.
- She mentors others by lending stock and equipment, helping unemployed people and young entrepreneurs start their own small businesses.
This story is part of Scrolla’s Women’s Day series celebrating women who shine in their communities. Women’s Day in South Africa honours the 20,000 women who marched to the Union Buildings on 9 August 1956 to protest against apartheid pass laws.
Dimakatso Hlongwane’s journey as an entrepreneur began in childhood, selling sweets at school to make pocket money. Years later, that same spirit carried her through one of the toughest moments of her life.
When her husband became severely ill with Parkinson’s disease, she had a 16-year-old son and just R500 to her name. Job hunting was impossible, and she needed to care for him.
“I couldn’t go job hunting, I had to care for him. But I also had to feed us,” she said.
She used the R500 to buy ingredients for magwinya and started selling while walking through her Danville, Pretoria neighbourhood. “Why walk for free when I could walk and sell?” she said.
With qualifications in marketing, hospitality and as a pastry chef from the Capital Hotel School, baking came naturally. Her magwinya was an instant hit.
Encouraged by her community, she bought a small Wendy house in 2019 and set up a food stall at home. The menu expanded to fish and chips, spahlo, wraps and stew.
She now has six employees, takes pre-orders through Uber Eats and Mr D, and recently opened a second branch in Soweto to create jobs.
During Covid, she kept her business going by installing glass barriers. “I couldn’t afford to get sick, I had to keep going,” she said.
Mama Dee also runs her late sister’s tombstone business to keep it alive. She helps others by lending stock or equipment to start their own ventures.
“I started with nothing, and now I’m building something bigger than myself,” she said. “This community helped me grow. I have to give back.”
Pictured above: Dimakatso Hlongwane.
Image source: Rorisang Modiba
