A young South African making a mark in fashion industry

Malapane Ntebatse Vinolia, a young gorgeous South African model who is changing the dynamics of the South African fashion industry through her exceptional entrepreneurial skills and her exceptional talent as a model. Here is what she had to say about her journey to where she is.

‘My name is Malapane Ntebatse Vinolia, growing up life was never kind for me because of the colour of my skin and this made me not to have a sense of belonging. I was looked at as different because of my skin and I was constantly mocked. Life at my primary school was so hard, I was constantly bullied. The bulling and mocking didn’t stop and it went all the way in my high school life. Despite all the challenges and cruelty that I was exposed on in my early life and academic life, I have always been a smart girl.

Growing up in Bolobedu Limpopo hasn't been the easy thing for me, I never used to understand why I was this way and why I was considered different. However, I didn’t let the problems I was facing bar me from the important things that were going around my life at the moment. I passed my matrix with distinctions and moved to Jo'burg. 

I have always wanted to be a model on one hand on the other I was having issues with my self-esteem. I use to think of how people would look at me or mock me and make a joke out of me and my skin tone. I worked on my self-confidence bit by bit, and enrolled with Tshwane University of technology where I studied events management.

I recently opened my own event company that host annual fashion shows, this idea was inspired by my talent as a model and the need to have efficiency and improvement in the fashion industry in South Africa. South African has very talented people in the fashion industry, the country has great designers, make-up artists, photographers among other talented persons in the fashion world.

For those in the fashion industry to efficiently and effectively do their job, they need models, exceptional models. However, these talented designers, makeup artists and photographers lack exceptional models to sell their products and services. This is where my company comes in it provides these talented persons in the fashion industry with very talented models to sell their products and services.

I wish and I believe I am a voice to the young girls in the villages and that I am a symbol that success is a diverse thing and every child is able and capable of achieving whatever they set their eyes on and neither their skin color nor whatever difference they have define them. I’m confirming to every child that they are destined for greatness; the only limit is their imagination.

I graduated last April 2019, and I'm doing very well for myself and I want to share my story with the world and give hope where there's no hope, give light where' there is darkness. If a girl like me could make it then any girl can do it and have a very successful life.

I’m also working with House of Perris in the United Kingdom, I'm their Brand ambassador here in South Africa. Kindly share my story on your page so that page can know about me and make a difference in the lives of the kids who are stuck in the villages thinking there's no way out. I'm here to tell them that I'm a living proof.