Just the perfect ingredient: Delicious and Better!

Once you believe in something and work on it, nothing can stop you from fulfilling it.

This is the mindset that David Lisbar Mokwele and his lovely wife and business partner, Tshepo Elizabeth Mokwele, have. When sceptics did not give their business idea chance, they were undeterred. With single-mindedness and sheer grit, they have produced a proudly South African fast growing small business, McFlora Archaar

The name McFlora Archar is derived from the Polokwane suburb, Flora Park Polokwane from where the Mokweles started operating the business from a small kitchen.

Established four years ago, McFlora Archaar manufactures, processes green mango and fresh vegetables into pickle commonly known as archar which is marketed under the McFlora Archaar brand.

“We use selected spices to mix our chopped mango or chopped veggies. Then we package them for our different markets in plastic and glass bottle containers, which are branded McFlora Archaar,” David Mokwele explains to Transform SA Online.

Mokwele’s close to two decades experience of teaching maths and combined with skills in entrepreneurship, together with Tshepo Mokwele’s qualifications in financial management and quality management, have proved to be a vital resource in building the company from its humble beginnings.

“Not only does the business have so much potential for growth, but also the right combination of skills. One can ensure that the quality of the products is up to scratch and the books are in order, while the other that production is at the expected level and the company is headed in the right direction,” Mokwele says.

As a black South African involved in the manufacture of food products,  he sticks out like a sore thumb.

The majority of black South Africans are in overtraded sectors like transport, catering and cleaning, and pickle foods manufacturing is not something they are renown for.  Mokwele admits that he entered the business through some strange twist of fate.

As a lover of archaar, he found the products that were sold in Polokwane rather stale and tasteless. Then the thought of starting a brand with a different taste came.

“We saw the opportunity to develop products with more flavours, in different sizes and for all market segments like Woolworths, Spars, Choppies and other grocery stores,” he says.

Mokwele started producing Archaar as a part-time pursuit, while he was teaching. Encouraged by the positive response from the local Spar outlet, he resigned in 2013 to give his business maximum attention. “I have given products from competitors a run for their money,” he reminisces.

Now a fast growing brand, McFlora Archaar is now distributed in three provinces – Limpopo, Gauteng and Kwazulu-Natal.

As a registered exporter, McFlora Archaar also supplies its products to Germany, Poland, Zimbabwe and Botswana, with promises of growing its market.

Mokwele attributes the product’s phenomenal growth to a combination of extensive research, done constantly and giving customers what they want.

“Produced to ISO22000 quality standard specifications, McFlora Archaar is so appealing. You got it in three flavours – Hot, Mild and Garlic. It comes from small tabs to 50 kilogrammes, with different types of packaging glass bottle containers and plastic bottles. It is the only archar with an option for olive oil. The only brand with its branded stands that make it stand out from the shops. Need I say more, we can cater for different markets without sacrificing on quality,” he says.

However, managing growth has come with its own challenges.

McFlora Archaar faces a pleasant dilemma of sorts which other businesses would wish they experienced: the demand of its pickle is so high that it is falling short of capacity to keep up. “We do not have the right machinery to speed up production processes,” bemoans Mokwele.

Due to resource constraints, reluctantly, the company has been forced to turn down some lucrative business opportunities. In 2014, Mokwele reveals, a contract to supply Pick ‘n Pay inland stream had to be put on hold as the high volumes the client required could not be met.

Currently, McFlora Archaar is waiting for funding to be channelled in building its distribution network to wholesalers, distributors, corporates retailers and agents and also the street vendors. It is looking for a place for a warehouse in Gauteng, from where its goods will be distributed to various clients.

As of now the McFlora Archaar will still be based in Polokwane, a strategic location close to the source of its main raw materials, mangos and fresh vegetables.

In two years’ time, Mokwele says, McFlora Archaar is aiming at standing out as the best quality producers of pickle food in the SADC region.

If there is anything Mokwele can tell youth who want to follow his path it is: “Have passion, be prepared to go the extra mile, make proper research, have a vision and plan, and get necessary documents and follow regulations for working with food and standard.”

For more information on McFlora Archar range of products, kindly contact David Mokwele through the following – email: info@mcflora.co.za, cell: 2773 285 3119