The story of Lekau Sehoana is one of the most beautiful success stories we have in the country.
Growing up in the township is one thing, but growing up in a shack, not knowing where your next meal will come from, is another.
People who grew up like that have to start from scratch, and it's never easy. Sehoana, the founder of Drip Footwear, is a hero to many black South Africans because his story resonates with them.
Most black South Africans don't have the proper infrastructure and resources to fund their dreams. With a lack of activities in the townships, many fall into drug and alcohol abuse and neglect their dreams.
Sehoana fell into the same trap at the age of 21.
"A lot of people ask me why I don't drink alcohol. I used to, a lot even. This is a picture of me at 21 years of age. Drunkard, poverty stricken and hopeless. But as a lover of fashion and pop culture, I was able to turn my life around," he said on Twitter.
Learning from his mistakes, he turned his life around, from not having a pair of shoes in school to owning a multimillion-rand shoe company.
"I'm glad that I discovered my greatness earlier on in life. Every human being has genius-level talent and greatness. There are no chosen ones. You just have to find what you are great at and tap into it. We are all great," he said.
It's barely been three years since he launched Drip Footwear and he has already worked wonders. With his 20 stores (and counting) across the country, he employs just over 300 South Africans.
The award-winning businessman, who recently launched a new collection of Drip sneakers, is taking his brand to greater heights.
He is launching The Drip Group, a company that will house all his brands, including a kiddies' clothing brand called Kiddies Republic and possibly some of his Legends Barber franchises.
"It's been two years and seven months since I sold the first pair of @dripfootwearsa sneakers. And on my way home from delivering those sneakers, I told myself that I'm not going to do this for a quick buck but to build a retail conglomerate. That was the birth of The Drip Group, a retail group that aims not only at developing retail brands and businesses but to build them from scratch as well as acquiring them," explained Sehoana.
As the cherry on top, he will soon be opening three more stores and will be moving from being the CEO of Drip Footwear to the executive chairperson of the Drip Group.
