Husband and wife team Lené and Johan Botha launched their product design label Woltemade in 2012 and formed part of the Emerging Creatives programme in 2013. This Cape Town-based creative duo come from interior and naval design backgrounds respectively and create craft furniture and home decor pieces that are simple yet stylish. Since participating in the Emerging Creatives programme in 2013 their label has gone from strength to strength
Did being part of Emerging Creatives help you establish your label?
Yes, the opportunity to showcase our work at an internationally renowned fair with some of South Africa’s leading designers gave us a real confidence boost. The Design Indaba Expo was not only good for our confidence, but also introduced us to new clients that realised 70% of our projects in 2013.
Has the volume or nature of your business changed since being a part of the Emerging Creatives programme?
Our sales figures almost tripled from 2012. We now have joint ventures with distributors in the UK, Turkey and are in negotiations with a retailer in the US. Locally we have narrowed down our stockists to three shops in Cape Town and one in Johannesburg. Since the Design Indaba Expo, our furniture now complements interiors in New York, London, California, Amsterdam and Munich. Our work will also be on displayed in stores in Hamburg and Milan in 2014.
What was the most valuable thing you got out of the programme?
To start a small design studio is exciting enough on it’s own and the exposure the Design Indaba set up for Woltemade propelled us to grow and function at a professional level quicker than we would have on our own.
What are you currently working on?
We’re busy with a new range of large tables, floor lamps and household accessories, hopefully to be launched at Design Indaba Expo 2014.
