BY PHESHEYA KUNENE
MANZINI – Self-taught Fashion Designer and clothing label founder here to make his mark.
Sanele Dlamini and Nonduduzo Nkosi are a unit that is passionate about art and creating elegant trends in the clothing industry. Their clothing label Heartbeat Merchandise is turning heads in town. We catch up with Sanele Dlamini.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELVES?
I am Sanele Dlamini and the other co-owner is Nonduduzo Nkosi, we are both very outgoing people hence we are in our early twenties. We are also very ambitious and driven.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR UPBRINGING?
Growing up we both had a strict upbringing, in one way or another, that instilled confidence in us and helped us learn important values, such as discipline. We were also had good manners like saying “please” and “thank you”.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR CLOTHING LABEL?
The brand is all about love and self-appreciation. So to an individual, it simply means that person loves him or herself without vocally mentioning that. If it is dressed by a couple, it simply means that the couple isn’t afraid to go public about their love. The logo is designed in a way that shows a heart and waves. We believe these waves are the heartbeats or rather the rhythms of the heart.
WHAT INSPIRED THE CONCEPT?
The inspiration behind the concept is that love of course and it’s all about presenting a clear picture of how people feel for each other. We actually noticed how people like to dress alike so we decided to come up with something that will show how they feel for each other it can either be a group of friends, a couple, or the whole family at large.
WHERE CAN PEOPLE FIND YOUR BRAND?
We are on almost every social media platform that includes Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp. We are mostly focusing on online marketing hence we do not have a physical location yet. Our social media handles are as follow; Facebook; Heartbeat Merch, WhatsApp; 76773376/79518210 and on insta; Heartbeat Brand
WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IS YOUR BIGGEST CAREER LESSON THUS FAR?
As brand owners, we have learned how to be interactive, to understand the value of clients and their satisfaction. Our biggest lesson was to grasp the skill of putting a smile on our customers by always delivering on time and exceeding their expectations. It is quality over quantity.
WHAT ARE YOUR FUTURE PLANS?
Heartbeat Merch has to grow to become one of the biggest brands locally. Also, we are planning a summer collection photo shoot soon. We will partner with local models and photographers.
WHAT ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO IN THE NEW YEAR?
We are looking forward to learning new skills, achieving our goals, and becoming happier people. We do not only want growth as a brand but also to grow as young entrepreneurs and grow in every aspect of life.
This year was challenging for many reasons. How did you overcome your biggest challenges?
This year was tough for many of us. There was COVID-19 and civil unrest in the country and this made it difficult for us to sell the merchandise. But we were forced to find a way out of this, so we started focusing more on social media and conducting our business there. We also partnered with conductors of public transport to help us deliver in all four regions of the country. It is costly but cheaper than us delivering the clothes.
