EDITORIAL | THEO BALOYI
HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT HOW POPULAR YOUR BRAND HAS BECOME IN SOUTH AFRICA? A lot of celebrities love our brand because our story resonates with them so well. They take pride in our story. Hence, they wear the brand with pride wherever they go - our brand speaks to the heart. We don’t want to be a fashion brand. We want to be a shoe retail brand. If Spitz can come here and build their brand, why can’t Bathu go to Italy and build a brand that Italians could say is proudly South Africa? It’s our
with more retail store locations, starting with Botswana in 2021. At present, Bathu offers a unique range of sneakers and related products for both children and adults, including the standard Mesh Edition, the Mesh Edition 2.0, Journey Edition Suede, and the Journey Edition Leather – with plenty more to come.
time; let’s build our continent. THE FUTURE FOR BATHU In January 2020, Bathu secured a 3700m² warehouse in Centurion,
CLICK HERE FOR PODCAST
Johannesburg, which houses their current staff base of 68 people – 80% of whom are from Alexandra. This figure has gradually increased throughout the year, combating the devastating local unemployment rates by creating jobs and strengthening the hopes of local families and individuals. As part of their vision for 2020, Bathu opened its sixteenth local store in November this year. Both Theo and Bathu pride themselves on creating an African footprint across the globe, and there are plans to position the brand across Africa,
28
IMPUMELELO TOP EMPOWERMENT
2 0 TH E D I T I O N
