Hard Times (HT) Investments managing director David Busang said in an interview that the brand has been well received. "We started with a hundred (100) T-shirts, to taste the market in Gaborone and Francistown but all were sold out within two days," said an impressed Busang.
The young entrepreneur stated that since then more customers have been calling him for more and the label has set tongues wagging in the two cities. "We have not done any form of advertising but word of mouth has been our strong marketing strategy," he said.
As its name implies, Hard Times is likely to face a tough time on the market but Busang is undaunted. He said their company is not scared of competition from other local brands already in the market. He said that their intention is to penetrate the domestic market by exceeding customer expectations. "Hard Times is a brand that is real, it's not the kind of stuff that easily falls apart and we want to be as simple as we can without compromising quality," he said.
He said the clothing line intends to give men's wear top priority after which children's and women's wear would follow. Busang pointed out that the HT label would be officially launched in December.
At the moment, he tends to team up with local fashion designers to give the products a professional appeal. Busang said while marketing is an essential aspect of every company, they would want to market the label in schools and other places where they feel it would easily get through. "We will take a nationwide tour of senior schools and market the label because schools make a viable market," noted Busang, who is based in Gaborone.
He said stalls would be opened in Gaborone, Francistown and later Kasane where different merchandise would be sold. T-shirt costs P80. Busang said their intention is to get closer to basketball through sponsoring tournaments and possibly the local basketball league to get closer to potential customers. Currently, there are shops in Francistown, which has ordered T-shirt and jackets and they also have requests from individuals. He said once the label makes it locally they would then explore opportunities outside Botswana possibly South Africa where he said they have strong links. Busang was optimistic that the clothing line will survive the test of time. "We just have to produce more and let the brand sell itself and we welcome our customers' input," asserted the youthful Busang.
As for name, the creative Busang pointed out it was derived from the fact that everyone is living in hard times and no one can deny that times are hard. "You may not wear Hard Times but the fact of the matter is that we are all living in hard times," he said.
Inspiration? With the passion and willingness to venture into business, Busang researched the market and realised that the clothing label was the only choice. He advised youth to be determined in making life for themselves saying there is so much potential on local market and is high time Batswana supported one another to ensure sustained economic growth.
