Woman On Top – Smangele Mathibeli

Former actress SMANGELE MATHIBELI heads up one of the biggest blackowned companies in Durban, Calvin and Family Group. She talks transitioning from one career to the next, and more

Those who grew up on an entertainment diet of SABC 1’s TV dramas will remember Smangele Mathibeli (neè Mbatha) for playing Nomsa on Yizo Yizo 3, and Madi on Zone 14. Along with these, the Soweto-born and now Durban-based actress held other roles on Heartlines, Gaz’lam and Scandal! before deciding to steer her passion for entertainment in a new direction. So what spurred the 37-year-old to turn her back on the world of make-believe in favour of the rough seas of entrepreneurship?

TRANSITIONING

Acting exposes you to a lot of excitement, says Mathibeli. And it was this feeling that made her realise that she could do way more with her career. The production bug bit during her acting heydays, but sadly, there weren’t that many opportunities – especially given that it was a skill that she wasn’t equipped for. “I knew from as early as my acting days that I wanted to do more with my career. I then decided to

try my hand at radio producing, firstly at Gagasi FM then later the Ukhozi FM breakfast show,” says Mathibeli, reiterating that there was no specific incident that pushed her out of acting. She clarifies: “If I had stayed on and pursued acting, opportunities definitely would have come my way. But I know that I’m a leader and that I can only follow for a while. I got to a point where I wanted to lead, create and grow.”

During her days as an award-winning content producer on Ukhozi FM, Mathibeli started a marketing and PR agency with a friend. They ran the company successfully for four years, until she met her husband, Calvin Mathibeli. “We decided to join business forces, with the aim of building our family empire,” she explains briefly. Under the Calvin and Family Group banner exists Calvin and Family Security, Wear It Manufacturing, Urban Infrastructure Consulting, Calvin and Family Plant Hire, Calvin and Family Properties, Unique Lifestyle Café, Unique Communications and Black Pride Media. “With my husband’s help — the founder and director of the Calvin and Family Group — my role is to oversee all these companies. We’ve split responsibilities in such a way that we play to our strengths. He’s more knowledgeable when it comes to construction and security, while my confidence lies in the creative side of the business. With that said, I’ve learnt that entrepreneurship is about commiting yourself to lifelong learning. There isn’t a day when I don’t learn something new about the different arms of our business,” she explains. The group CEO adds that she learnt most of her skills on the job, and supplemented her knowledge with part-time Bcom and journalism courses. Most importantly, she continues, her biggest learning curve has come from always asking those who know better than her. The 14-year-old Calvin and Family Group currently employs more than 400 people across all eight divisions, and is driven by its ambitious “5 years, 5 000 jobs” company vision. “We are passionate about changing people’s lives and helping out where we can, because we know that our spirits will forever be present in those people’s lives,” Mathibeli explains.

BOSS LADY

Mathibeli generally approaches her position with ease and a lot of self-motivation. She admits that one of the lessons she’s yet to learn is the art of patience. “I’m learning that once I’ve put my all into something, I should step back and let things work themselves out. With time, things always fall into place,” she reflects. “Everyday presents a chance for me to be a better person, and that excites me. In the midst of everything, we lose ourselves in our fancy job titles. My biggest fear is losing sight of who I am meant to be and who I really am.”

It’s been said that while entrepreneurship looks glamorous on paper, reality presents a completely different story — something Mathibeli totally concurs with. “It’s a lot of hard work, it’s stressful and there are many episodes of wanting to give up,” she says. What keeps her going, however, is a lesson that she drilled into her head early on. “I’ve seen how important it is for one’s entrepreneurial pursuits to be in line with one’s passion, because when the chips are down, your passion will keep you afloat,” she says, adding that “passion is not overrated”.

BALANCING ACT

A mother of five — two boys and three girls from her husband’s previous relationship — Mathibeli reflects on how having people that still recognise her from her TV days has stood her in good stead, and in some cases, opened new doors for her. In the same breath, however, there are some people who’ve made crude remarks such as, “she musn’t come here and think that this is TV!” “I’ve learned to rather focus on lovingly showing the naysayers that I’m human, and that I’m also here to pursue my dreams,” she states matter-of-factly.

Spreading herself across all eight companies and still being a present parent has been a challenge. Mathibeli attributes her sanity to her live-in helper, whom she says has been her saving grace. “This balancing act is very tricky. I’m not perfect and have no ambitions of being so. Luckily, God has this amazing ability of blessing us with children that fit seamlessly into our lives. My kids appreciate and understand all that I do for them. And, I try and squeeze in some metime amidst all the madness,” she shares.

On the subject of whether she’d ever consider revisiting her passion for acting, a resolute Mathibeli says that she has her sights firmly set on producing. “I’m currently producing two projects. One is a documentary on former Ukhozi FM on-air presenter Linda Sibiya, which I’ve been working on for four years now,” she explains. The second is also a doccie titled Differently

Gifted. If any entertainment-related opportunity avails itself, she’d definitely jump at it, she continues. “The difference, this time around, is that I’d be pursuing that opportunity because I want to — not because I have to.” ■