Mogau Seshoene’s mission in life is to uplift communities through the kitchen by teaching traditional South African cooking to local women.
Seshoene is the founder and CEO of The Lazy Makoti, a thriving culinary business known for its traditional cuisine. In 2014, after leaving her corporate finance job to start her business, she decided to offer intimate and informative cooking lessons for the modern Afropolitian.
Raised in the history-laden Mamelodi township in Tshwane, the disruptor enjoys empowering young people with the philosophy that combining a positive attitude and an inquisitive spirit results in actualising your full potential.
The Lasy Makoti empowers rural and township women to host cooking classes on African traditional cuisine and to sell proudly South African hand-made kitchen accessories. This includes chopping boards, aprons and other locally inspired kitchen utensils.
“Not only do I get to do what I love and am passionate about on a daily basis, but I am also able to share my joy with other women. All this whilst preserving our African cultural heritage. Together we bring new excitement and discoveries to Africa’s cuisine. This we do with interactive, immersive and vibrant cooking classes and cultural dining experiences,” she proudly declares.
Besides being listed as a Mandela Washington fellow at the University of Wisconsin in 2016, she was also featured in the Forbes Africa 30 under 30 list in 2017.
“What sets us apart is that our products are locally produced by ordinary hardworking people in the townships. This helps in empowering local communities, among them Mamelodi. I am born, ‘bread’ and ‘buttered’ in the township. It fulfils me to share the success of the company and that of my own with the people who made me and nurtured me whilst growing up in the township,” she states.
Apart from helping women, particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds, she has already set her sight on expanding The Lazy Makoti brand into major retail chain enterprises nationally.
