While many South Africans were going through hardships imposed by the hard lockdown in the past two years, soccer player Willard Katsande kept the social media community in stitches with his wild fashion taste.
In a series of videos Katsande, who now plays for Sekhukhune United, would put on quite a show with his torn shirts, baggy pants and even introduced a dance move to add a touch to the spectacle. All his posts trended on social media, with some people laughing and others ridiculing him. But he was not shaken. To him it was part of a strategy of a bigger vision.
The 36-year-old has since established his own clothing label Boss Ya Mboka. However, the Zimbabwean-born soccer player believes that Boss Ya Mboka are the people who have pushed him to formalise his clothing line. He now owns an online store where people buy his products.
As the Sowetan team meets the footie at a popular fast food outlet in Roodepoort on the West Rand, you notice the four cellphones he is carrying. Each gadget has its own purpose and functionality such as business and personal.
The seasoned player says that launching his own clothing line is a way to create something to fall back on when soccer life ends. Katsande wants to end a bad culture where SA soccer players become paupers after retiring.
“The main thing is that we need to change the game as footballers... it can’t continue like this. It can't be a norm that when a footballer retires he becomes poor.
“We have young kids who aspire to be soccer players and we need to demonstrate that soccer is a career that can take care of you. We need to be smart about how we spend our money and how we plan our future.
“Playing football gives you mileage in the society, so use it to your advantage. I always tell my colleagues that start now so that we can support you. The problem is that we want to start business when we have stopped playing.
“We expect the business to give you a profit that is equal to what you earned in soccer. In fact in business, if you gain R30 it is a huge plus. Business is about patience and consistency. I mean Coca-Cola sold 25 bottles for a year when they started.”
When it comes to Boss Ya Mboka, the idea started in 2017. Katsande was inspired by his late father who was a fashionista. Mboka means “country” in Lingala, a language spoken in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
He says initially, he wanted to bring back the fashion worn during Nelson Mandela and Steve Biko eras. Under Boss Ya Mboka he has produced Lanji underwear for men, perfume, golf T-shirts, Limpio pants and vests, Unico and Naranja shirts.
“The idea started with me discussing this with my wife. The idea grew until we registered the clothing line. When I started I was fascinated by the fact that people love tight clothes.
“I wanted to bring back the old era of tight clothes. I started posting in different outfits. And I know people were laughing and I was trending. But the bigger plan was to grow our social media presence because everything these days is about it. When we achieved that goal people started demanding Boss Ya Mboka merchandise. That is when we began to introduce T-shirts.
“We have been getting good support from the public and sports fraternity. We have developed a database of people who support us and are always looking for ways to show appreciation for their support. We are trying to make this journey interesting by coming up with creative ideas.”
Katsande, who also calls himself King Salt, explains that the torn shirts he normally wears remind him of how he grew up in Mutoko, Mashonaland, in Zimbabwe. As a young man growing up, wearying a torn shirt to school was normal because his parents could not afford to buy him new school uniform. Things were so hard at home that he only had one meal a day.
“When I wear torn shirts I am reminding myself of where I come from. I can’t believe that I am here now. But I also wanted people to have something to laugh about because it was during lockdown and we all did not know how to react to the closure of the world. I am going to introduce the torn shirts merchandise when the time is right,” he says laughing.
As the soccer journey comes to an end soon, Katsande seems to have everything figured out. The seasoned midfielder also owns Katsande Partners, a construction company, and a soccer academy. The construction company was registered in 2017 and it was only last year that it began to make money for him.
“The construction is also part of the businesses that should take care of me when I stop playing. It is doing well because it is the one that funds Boss Ya Mboka at the moment. In all my businesses I try to be hands-on, but once they are established I don’t have to be there.
“I am currently being assisted by my wife, my brother and my niece to make sure these three babies are a success. With the soccer academy, I am really just giving young people an opportunity to learn the skills and develop their talent at a young age.”
The legend, who plans to hang up his soccer boots in June next year, admits that since he started his three projects, he hardly has time to for himself. Katsande only rests when he is camping with his teammates.
His typical day starts with Sekhukhune United training at 6am and when it ends he attends to all his businesses. In the afternoon, he goes to the academy in Ruimsig to check the progress of the boys.
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