NKHENSANI RIKHOTSO
@her.merakai
SOWETO-BORN Nkhensani runs a successful plant consultancy and shop, but she only started bringing plants into her home a couple of years ago. “I was going through a life change,” she says. Her therapist asked what makes her happy and being surrounded by greenery while visiting Mpumalanga came to mind. “She told me I should bring that into my home.”
She started with just one small aloe, which she killed by overwatering it. But before she knew it her home was exploding with 200 varieties of plants. In lockdown she posted a pic of her plants, styled with the help of her son and little sister, on Instagram. “That’s when I realised that people don’t know how to look after their plants, and I decided I would start sharing plant caring tips.” At the time Nkhensani had 235 followers. Within a year, this number jumped to 10 000. She left her corporate job in digital marketing to focus on Her Merakai, her plant shop and consultancy. Nkhensani is also a qualified reiki healer. “I believe my deepest purpose in this life is to help others find their own healing, whether that’s through reiki healing or creating a safe and mindful space with plants.”
Her designs for the Mr Price Home colab represent a blend between nature and the female form. “I feel it is deeply grounded in everything that is my passion, love, my soul and my work. The thing that inspired this range was the women that I have in my life and the women that raised me.”