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СпутникиРНSpaceXРоскосмосNASAWhile many young people continue searching for employment in South Africa, a young man has transformed a shoe-cleaning idea into a growing business. Diepsloot entrepreneur Stephen Maboka is the founder of MS Shoes, a shoe-cleaning and repair business that is now expanding into online shoe reselling, according to the Daily Sun. Born into a family...
While many young people continue searching for employment in South Africa, a young man has transformed a shoe-cleaning idea into a growing business. Diepsloot entrepreneur Stephen Maboka is the founder of MS Shoes, a shoe-cleaning and repair business that is now expanding into online shoe reselling, according to the Daily Sun.
Born into a family that loves sports, the 25-year-old’s business was inspired by his mother’s frequent complaints about dirty and smelly sports shoes.
“We are a sports family and everyone at home plays sports. My mother always complained about the smell of our soccer boots. That’s when I started washing the shoes and realized there was a business opportunity,” he said to the Daily Sun.
Maboka turned the service into a business after observing how many people avoided cleaning their shoes. He started by cleaning shoes for family members before expanding the service to neighbors and the broader community.
In 2024, he officially launched MS Shoes, which offers shoe cleaning and repair services and is planning to enter the online retail market.
Maboka’s journey into entrepreneurship, however, was not smooth sailing. After completing matric (the final year of high school or Grade 12 and the high school-leaving certificate) in 2019, he struggled to find employment for several years. Things changed when he joined Afrika Tikkun’s work readiness program in 2023.
“I couldn’t go to university, and I was unemployed. I heard that Afrika Tikkun was offering programmes for matric learners, so I decided to join as I was tired of just being at home,” he said in an interview he had with the organization.
Through Afrika Tikkun, Maboka completed a year-long learnership and enrolled at the MTN Skills Academy. This provided him with essential computer and digital skills, such as email training and Microsoft Office. Empowered by these newfound skills and confidence, he felt inspired to establish his own business.
“I learned teamwork, critical thinking and problem-solving. That’s when I realized that if I couldn’t find work, I could solve a problem and turn it into a business.”
Afrika Tikkun is a proudly South African, apolitical non-profit organisation that has been a leading provider of education, health, social services, skills development and job placements to disadvantaged communities across the country.
The organization’s work readiness program inspired Maboka to become self-employed, but running the business alone was not easy. “I realized you can’t do everything by yourself,” he said.
“In 2025, I brought partners Siyabonga Dlamini and Thelane Mashavela on board, helping the business grow and reach more customers,” he added.
He, however, said the business needs “proper equipment to dry shoes faster so we can offer quicker turnaround times to our customers.”
Despite some of the challenges, Maboka is still focused on growing MS Shoes with a long-term goal of employing more people from the community to help reduce unemployment. Figures show that South Africa’s official unemployment rate rose to 32.7% in the first quarter of 2026, up from 31.4% in the previous quarter.
Maboka has the following advice for other young people: “Don’t sit back waiting for someone to employ you. Go out there and create opportunities for yourself. If you identify a problem and solve it, that can become your business. People will support you if you put yourself out there.”
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