With a limited number of women especially in Zimbabwe venturing into agriculture, Nomaliso Musasiwa has defied all odds and has become a force to reckon within the farming sector. From being a mathematician by qualification, Nomaliso is now the founding Director for Fresh in A Box which has won hearts with its home delivery of fresh vegetables. Women’s Weekly Journal Digital Manager Magreth Ruzvidzo (MR) caught up with Nomaliso (NM) to get insight on her business and how she is navigating through the challenges and opportunities in the farming industry.
MR: Can you briefly tell us who Nomaliso Musasiwa is?
NM: I am a lover of logic, a mom, a wife, a farmer and a person who truly expresses what she thinks.
MR: As a young woman what made you choose farming, was it out of passion or it was something else motivated you
NM: Farming chose me; I got into farming through events of trying to get a hold of our supply chain with Fresh In A Box
MR: The agriculture industry is male dominated, as a lady how are you navigating and still leaving such a visible and influential mark
NM: With agriculture, we are blessed that we only realize you are male or female when we meet at events to do with agriculture -your produce doesn’t care about your gender. It requires your farming hat, heart and passion at all times to produce the best results. So, I guess what makes me stand out, besides my work, is that I speak up when I need to and I raise my hand to be counted when a call is made.
MR: If you can shed more light on what Fresh In A Box and Farm Fresh is all about (when did it start and what do you specialise in)
NM: We started Fresh in A Box (FIAB) in October 2018 as a pure coincidence. We started off as a vegetable delivery company, which we still do. We define ourselves as a technology company that creates solutions in the agriculture space.
MR: How has been your journey so far, looking from where you started and where you are right now and how do people perceive your products and services?
NM: Every entrepreneur’s journey is a bumpy one. We have persevered through it all, we have grown and scaled up and down as a company and still kept our promise to deliver happiness.
MR: How do you strike a balance between your work and family, there are some women out there who might be struggling to strike a balance and might need to learn from you
The secret is that there is no balance, just trade off. Sometimes work steals family time and vice versa, I have just learnt not to beat myself up about it.
Nomaliso Musasiwa
MR: What are some of your achievements so far and what are you looking forward to in the next 5 years to come
NM: Staying in business for our type of start-up is a win every day for us, building new tech and seeing the adoption from other users is a very big achievement. We want to expand into SADC, and see more Africans use our tech for their convenience.
MR: How did the COVID-19 pandemic affect your business and how has been the path to recovery?
NM: Ours is a story of tested growth business during Covid 19 pandemic. We learnt a lot of insights from our customers. However, our VIC was infected by Covid 19 at the beginning of 2021. That was a huge blow to the team’s morale and confidence. Working to keep them motivated was a huge challenge but we managed. Covid 19 has affected a lot of our clients’ buying power and earning capacity, we are on the bend of recovery and we always keep our clients at the centre of it all
MR: Besides Fresh In A Box and Farm Fresh, what other things do you do, if you don’t mind sharing?
NM: I actually do a bit of consulting here and there, but my main focus right now is building Let’s Farm Africa.
MR: Who/What has been your support system throughout your journey?
NM: Working with my husband. It has made the journey bearable
MR: Most young and small scale farmers do not understand much about value addition, what advice can you give them
NM: I don’t agree with this assertion, most of us farmers know and understand value addition when it comes to our produce. We have to pick a struggle most of the times, capital to invest in production or value addition machinery. We always choose primary production because we think after 3-4 iterations you may have capital to invest in machines to value add your produce. I guess it’s in our nature to be hopeful as farmers. So my advice would be: Don’t stop and get other investors on board for value addition, you won’t regret it.
MR: What can you say to fellow women out there, who might be contemplating or fearing to start a business?
Don’t fear starting, fear regret. Business is never going to be smooth sailing. If you are conscious of that, start. If you aren’t ready for it don’t bother. Either way it’s okay.
Nomaliso Musasiwa