Sneaker brand puts funky spring into youths' footsteps

Businessman and Mitchwear founder, Johnny Modiba, reckons the sneaker he created and wears every day will take the footwear industry by storm. 

Having created employment for a team of 15 people in sales, marketing, distribution and design since the brand’s inception late last year, Modiba is hopeful that he will add more workers into his flourishing footwear establishment. 

“I have created quite a number of job opportunities though the business only started operating in November,” said Modiba, adding that the youth have been receptive of his chunky, fun and funky sneaker.

“The fact that youngsters are looking into Mitchwear, I see its potential generating more business and creating more opportunities so we can employ more people by the end of this year,” said Modiba who hails from Tzaneen in Limpopo,

The name “Mitch”, according to baby names website The Bump, is the derivative of the biblical name Miyka'el (or Michael in English form), which in Hebrew means “the one who resembles God”.

The name Mitchwear therefore is associated with goodness, Modiba chips in, and it's “welcomed by everyone in the sneaker space”. 

“It resembles cleanliness. When you read the Bible, you’ll see it means something or someone who has been welcomed by people, seeing how it’s been received by my customers. It’s a beautiful brand name that everyone can understand and remember,” he said.

For decades, South Africans have relied heavily on international brands, and this is what inspired the 46-year-old to use his experience gained in skills development to finally get his own business off the ground. 

“Our country has very few shoe manufacturers... We have to make sure we don’t depend on international brand names. It’s been great seeing other local sneaker designers being embraced. They have paved the way for us. There’s some level of acceptance from our own people,” he said. 

“I respect Bathu and Drip founders because they inspired me, they show that we as South Africans have our own creativity. Those brands were an ice breaker for us in this industry.” 

Modiba believes in being more hands-on in the day-to-day running of his business, from designing, to manufacturing and the marketing part of the company.  

“I’m an all-rounder who never leaves everything to the team. I want to be hands-on all the time. I even deliver the sneakers to clients myself if needs be.” 

He highlights that during his primary school days at Lephepane village he'd go to school barefoot and when his parents bought him shoes they would never stand out hence he now wants his products to have a unique feel to them for his customers. 

“Whenever I had a chance at owning shoes, it would be a sneaker that is worn by everyone because it was a small town,” he says. 

Modiba was an executive manager in the quality assurance division at the department of higher education and training and part of his responsibilities was to review and develop occupational qualifications to address skills scarcity in the country. 

With well-known music producer and singer King Monada as his brand ambassador, Modiba says he is looking forward to collaborating with other artists and brands. 

“I have passion for this industry. So, I’m open to both local and international collaborations. I hope I start receiving proposals from other businesses and having discussions with those who see their place in my brand because I don’t want to limit it to myself,” he said. 

Modiba also sees himself branching into manufacturing socks, tracksuits and underwear to expand his brand to skills development. 

“I would like to see my team and I participating in upskilling our people and empowering others. So, we’re looking into introducing other products other than just footwear, even formal shoes. We’re sure we will be employing a lot of youth.”