It was Ellen Johnson Sirleaf,
Africa’s first elected female
president, who said if your
dreams do not scare you, then
they are simply not big enough.
Speak to Durban businesswoman
Nelly Shezi and she will tell you
about scary dreams that take you
places. In just seven years she has
not only realised her dream of
running her own
business, but she
has managed
to expand the
footprint of the
company to such
an extent that
she is exporting
across Africa.
And just as
importantly,
she is sharing
that dream with
hopeful young
men and women
through several skills transfer
programmes.
“It was not easy. Not by a long
shot,” she says when asked about
her decision to start Elegant Line
Chemicals which manufactures and
distributes a variety of chemical
products, from domestic and
industrial commodity chemicals to
lubricants, personal care products
and water treatment solutions.
Born and bred in Durban, with a
chemical background, she had been
working for several years when she
decided to take the plunge in 2007
and venture out on her own. “It was
just time. I needed to do something
for myself and I wanted to see if I
could make a go of it.”
With just herself, her dreams
and a receptionist, Elegant Line
Chemicals was born. With the
head office, factory and laboratory
in Durban, the
company also
has branches
in Gauteng,
Eastern Cape,
Angola and
Zimbabwe.
“It has taken
a lot of hard
work and
determination.
Starting a small,
medium and
micro enterprise
(SMME) is
difficult enough, making a success
of it even more so,” says Shezi. And
she did it during a recession no less.
Having been awarded the 2013
Africa SMME Award and more
recently the Frost & Sullivan’s
South African Entrepreneurial
Company of the Year Award in the
commodity chemicals space, the
business has also been recognised
as one of the country’s top
emerging exporters. There is no
stopping Shezi who has proven one
does not have to be based in the
economic hub that is Johannesburg
to be successful.
In fact, she believes there
are some major advantages for
manufacturers and shippers to be
situated close to the ports. “The
cost of logistics in Africa is high
enough without adding extra cost
to transportation by increasing a
leg to the port. For me it makes
sense to be based in my home town
of Durban,” she says.
But being Durban-based is just
part of the secret to her success.
She has rapidly grown Elegant Line
Chemicals both within and outside
South Africa on the strength
of a robust business model that
focuses on high product quality
with innovative solutions, excellent
customer service and imparting
training to an industry with an
acute skills shortage.
“I import skills from Europe
and America as much as I can and
impart that to young people. We
have to improve our skills base in
Africa if we are going to increase
our manufacturing sector – the
lack of skills remains a major
impediment.”
With her first export shipment
having arrived in Mozambique
in 2010, she has gradually been
growing her market and currently
exports to some eight other
countries including the DRC,
Angola and the islands of Reunion.
“We have been very clear in the
strategy we have set out. We are not
going out to conquer the world. We
want to export from our Durban
base where we manufacture most
of our products to Africa. Next on
the cards is Nigeria,” she said.
But in true Shezi style it is
not being rushed. She says it is
important to have a very clear
understanding of the market you
are operating in.
“We tailor-make solutions and
have systematically expanded our
footprint in southern Africa by
partnering with local companies
on the ground to benefit from their
expertise, but also to make sure we
get to understand the heart of the
market.”
She has also made sure that
her business does not become the
target of the big players in the
chemical industry. “We cannot
take on the big companies and
therefore we have marketed our
product directly to end-users and
have developed a network of local
distributors within the markets we
serve.”
Research and development
are important aspects of the
business. “As an entrepreneur
one has to remain innovative and
continuously work at extending
one’s product line, keeping it viable
and making sure it is meeting the
needs of the market. At the same
time we have kept it very simple –
we don’t do fancy packaging and
we use suppliers that are able to
move our goods efficiently and
effectively adhering to the strict
ISO guidelines.”
INSERT & CAPTION
We are not going out to
conquer the world. We
want to export from our
Durban base, where we
manufacture most of our
products, to Africa.
– Nelly Shezi
CAPTION 1
Product is loaded ahead of export at the premises of Elegant Line Chemicals in Durban.
CAPTION 2
Hand sanitiser is one of the many
products manufactured and
distributed in Africa by Elegant Line
Chemicals.
