Moagi goes global with knitwear
Cancer survivor puts skill to work
What started as a hobby for Kgomotso Moagi has now turned into profitable a business with a global market.
Moagi, a 27-year-old cancer survivor from Soweto, has put the crocheting skill she inherited from her granny to good use with a trendy knitwear online store.
Her passion for crocheting was perfected after she was declared clinically depressed during a remission period.
She used crocheting to escape depression.
“It all came naturally as I began to use my hands to knit relieving the stress and anxiety by designing scarves, jerseys, bags, hats, dresses and accessories and people loved them,” she told Sowetan.
Six years later, Moagi registered her business and established Nuna’s Boutique from her home and on social media platform Instagram. The business is named after her daughter Lethabo Nuna Moagi who she gave birth to during her five-year remission.
“I had my miracle baby after the doctor said I would not have children because my body had been weak through medication,” she recalled.
Moagi now creates trendy knitwear from the comfort of her own home and sells it to customers all over the world.
Using social media and word of mouth to promote her products, Moagi has grown from knitting 15 pieces a month to now working on over 50 orders a month. It takes a day to knit a full jersey, she said.
Detailing her long struggle with cancer over the years, Moagi said she was diagnosed with lymphoma in 2011.
Lymphoma is a type of cancer that affects the white blood cells known as lymphocytes. These are the cells that help fight disease in the body.
Her mother died from the same type of cancer at the age of 29. Kgomotso was only three years old at the time.
“My whole world stopped when I realised the same giant that devoured my mother at a young age was now out to get me.
“Right there and then I knew it was time to fight for my life,” she said.
With the help of her grandmother and medical treatment she managed to win the battle, although doctors have warned that the cancer could return someday.
Following her successful treatment of the illness, Moagi decided to join the medical field by enrolling for a course to become a paramedic.
She then worked as an ambulance assistant for four years and is now studying towards nursing.
“I never stopped and no sickness could make me sell my dreams and stay on my death bed and wait to die.”
Moagi now hopes to grow her business by employing people who can knit as fast as she can.
“You can do anything if you set yourself up and always get up when you fall,” she declared boldly.