My heart is with Zim: Mbondiah

By The Standard | Mar. 14, 2021

A businesswoman, who had set up base in the United Kingdom, Maureen Mbondiah Mandipaza (MM), has returned to Zimbabwe to accomplish her long-held ambition — to establish enterprises that can change the lives of her countrymen. Today, her business interests span from a shopping mall, a supermarket to an upmarket lodge in the resort town of Kariba. In this interview with our senior business reporter Fidelity Mhlanga (FM), Mbondiah tells Standardbusiness why she decided to return home after establishing a successful business in the UK and what she found in Zimbabwe on her return. It is an exciting story of patriotism and resilience, one that as we enter the second week of celebrating International Women’s Day, we felt can ignite the ambition to pursue entrepreneurship by fellow Zimbabweans. Here is how their discussion turned out…

FM: Tell us about the scope of your operations.

MM: I established Dravens Healthcare in the United Kingdom in 2016 after getting fed up working from hand-to-mouth with no real freedom. I wanted to have more control over when I worked and how much money I earned.

FM: What prompted you to come back and what opportunities did you see back in Zimbabwe?

MM: I lived in the UK for 22 years. There was nothing good about living away from home, to be honest. From the time I arrived, it was my dream to return home. Zimbabwe is my heartbeat and my home. There is so much potential here. I gained great business exposure in the UK and I have brought this back home to inspire and impact my people. Our people have the knowledge and are very educated. They need someone with exposure to combine the skills and bring out a better Zimbabwe.

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FM: Was it an easy decision to come back home?

MM: Yes, it was something I decided within a week. Covid-19 really helped me to appreciate the power of virtual working and I realised this was my time to take the leap back home and continue to work on my business from home.

FM: Are you or have you faced any challenges in your business and what are these?

MM: In business you face challenges every day, especially for someone who has worked and lived in the first world for so long. My challenges are on the culture of people here. Customer service, time management, systems and processes to include effectiveness I find are my real challenges. I love empowering and mentoring, so the challenges can be managed.

FM: Take us through your business, and it’s target market.

MM: My business is a vintage shopping mall in Chitungwiza where we offer office space and retail space for rental on a monthly basis. We also have a vintage supermarket within the complex, which we run together with the shopping mall. We also have a guest lodge in Kariba where we host tourists.

FM: You recently won two awards. Tell us more about these accolades.

MM: I was honoured to receive these awards from Redlipstick Revolution, an organisation that empowers women. I won the Outstanding Business Achievers Awards International 2021 and Outstanding Business Achievers Awards UK 2021. It was humbling to be recognised for your hard work amongst other giants. I am grateful to the Redlipstick Business Awards team for such an honour

FM: What advice would you give to fellow women, who are hesitant to start and grow businesses?

MM: I tell women that they can do better. For the diaspora community aspiring to start business in Zimbabwe, there are a lot of opportunities here. Just implement and develop systems and processes in your business that will promote transparency and effectiveness within your business.

FM: Tell us also about your charity work.

MM: I have always been involved in supporting girls and widows. My venture now is the Momentors Orphanage in Chitungwiza — a home for girls. I am awaiting my registration to be officially allowed to have children, but the home is ready to go. My business is my main funder for the orphanage.

Biography

Currently an MBA Student in Leadership and Management at St John’s University, York.

Awards and accolades