From my grandmother to me: Success through leather

MPHO TLALE
Staff Writer | Friday August 30, 2013 00:00

After the dream, Botha says her life changed for the better.  She started doing leatherworks again after a hiatus of nearly 20 years caused by her fear that no man would marry her if she continues with the craft.Today she is reaping the benefits.  Through leatherworks, she feeds her family.  The woman who hails from Kolonkwaneng a few kilometres from Tsabong in the Kgalagadi District is a content leather tanner.  In 2010, she won the Presidential Competitions for the overall Best Leatherwork in Gaborone.After the dream, she says she had to wait for some time before she got a Trophy Dealers Licence from the Wildlife Department.  This is because she uses hides and skins from domesticated animal and wildlife.  She makes her products from hides and skins from goats, foxes and antelope and other animals.

Botha says she became interested in leatherworks in 1974 when she was doing Standard One and her grandmother gladly taught her before she passed on a few years later.However, due to worries that she would never get married because of engaging in the craft, she abandoned leatherworks until she got a tongue-lashing from her grandmother in the dream.  Most of her clients are mainly couples who want to wed and/or those who want to use the leather for decorative purposes. Her prices range from P75 to around P1,600 depending on the size of the leatherwork and decorations.Like with every venture, Botha's business has challenges.  The first is hunting for the mositsana tree that she uses to colour the leather.  It gives the red colour and preserves the inside. The other challenge is switching from using losika, a thread from the spinal cord of wild animals.  Because of the strict laws to protect wild animals, Botha has had to improvise and use other threads.

The Kgalagadi District has a shortage of water and this has an impact on her business.  The leatherworks need a lot of water to wash the hides and skins to remove the smell.  If there is no water, business stops and her livelihood is affected.  However despite the challenges, Botha is more than determined to pursue her passion.To date, she gives credit to Batswana who have been supporting her business. She wishes that government would promote and support her business and encourage other talented Batswana to take up craftsmanship.  'If the government does not support us and buy our work to display in their offices, who then will,' she asks.