PaPa Joe's was founded in April 2017 by the middle-aged woman Ngobeni, who hails from Serowe. Initially based in Botswana, the business faced a major setback when government imposed a vegetable importation ban in the country in 2021.
The company uses fresh vegetables like garlic, red onion, red bell pepper, bird eye’s chillie, tomatoes and various vegetables depending on the sauce flavour she is making which makes her business to stand out. However, in order to have access to supply of fresh vegetables, she made a decision to relocate the business to South Africa, specifically Johannesburg.
But now the business is confronted with other challenges. Despite having a loyal customer base, PaPa Joe's has to grapple with fees for exporting her products to Botswana, while on the other hand pricing has become a little bit challenging because most of their products are made in South Africa leading to importation fees and difficulty in penetrating the market.
According to Ngobeni, these obstacles have hindered growth of PaPa Joe's and made it difficult for the business to expand its reach. The company remains resolute to providing high-quality sauces to their customers while taking pride in using only the freshest ingredients in their products, and ensuring that each sauce is packed with flavour and goodness.
With a wide range of flavours to choose from, customers are ‘sure to find a sauce that suits their taste preferences’. Ngobeni told BusinessMonitor that in order to overcome the challenges the company faces, they are actively seeking new opportunities to expand their market reach. She said the business is exploring different distribution channels and marketing strategies to increase their visibility and attract more customers. By focusing on innovation and quality, they are determined to overcome the obstacles in their path and achieve success in the competitive food industry.
Ngobeni added they are planning to branch out to different countries, have a product line and go beyond the line. Apart from making sauces PaPa Joe's wants to make use of those who have large quantities of vegetables that go to waste to make several products. “I believe in empowerment, hence why I want to branch my business in order to create employment for single mothers because they are struggling and there are not much job opportunities in our country,” she said. Currently, PaPa Joe's products are sold at Square Mart, a popular supermarket chain in Gaborone, while their biggest client is a butcher in Jwaneng.
Regarding rivals in the market, Ngobeni said instead of viewing other companies as her competitors she appreciates other sauce makers. She recognises competition’s creativity since everyone has their own secret recipe and uses different ingredients. For instance, her sauces are good for marinating both red and white meat, and you can use them on pasta because chillie sauce doesn’t mean that it’s rather chillie it’s flavour.
