From selling pencils and lollipops in primary school to mixing and brewing different flavoured teas that are now trending in global markets.
Retang Phaahla allowed her curiosity with the indigenous plants brought back by her mother from Limpopo to grow into something that has won her the 2025 Veuve Clicquot Bold Woman Award.
Now in its 53rd year globally, the award honours visionary women who, in the spirit of Clicquot Ponsardin, lead with courage, innovation and a commitment to empowering others. Madame Clicquot, also known as Veuve Clicquot, was a French industrialist in champagne production. She took on her husband's wine business when widowed at 27.
Phaahla said that though she always had an entrepreneurial side to her, she always thought she would own a construction company, and never had a tea company in mind.
But it was her mother’s community development work in Limpopo and a bunch of indigenous teas she brought back home that sparked what would become an award-winning venture.
Phaala said the recently won award validates all the work she has put into creating Setšong Tea Crafters.
“Professionally, it validates that we’re on the right track, and it also validates the importance of the work that we do in terms of preserving and exposing indigenous knowledge systems,” she said.
She added that it reinforced the dream she had back in 2017 – to see tea from rural Limpopo penetrate global markets.
“It’s really validating, and it makes us even more bold now to go forward and knock down as many doors as we can. It adds a lot of weight in the conversations we're having with retail buyers, hospitality buyers, and even in accessing international markets,” said Phaahla.
“It’s really validating, and it makes us even more bold now to go forward and knock down as many doors as we can. It adds a lot of weight in the conversations we're having with retail buyers, hospitality buyers, and even in accessing international markets
— Retang Phaahla
She started by blending teas in her mother’s kitchen and selling them at the Rosebank Sunday market in 2016.
She said they formalised the business in 2017, and by 2018, they were already stocked in small grocery stores and delis, and even launched an online store.
But what might surprise others was that while Covid seemed to hinder some businesses, Phaahla said that's when the business boomed.
“That’s when we really started to grow. People were more health-conscious and looking for alternatives. Lengana (Artemisia afra) was popular then. We had to end up sourcing it even as far as KZN due to shortages from local supply.
“Luckily, we had stockpiled our tea, but at the same time, it was difficult for us to travel back and forth between Limpopo and Gauteng frequently, so my mom’s kitchen and her back room became the production sites,” she said.
What sets the business apart is its inclusivity; it's co-owned by two rural co-operatives and passes down intergenerational knowledge.
“We’re also leaving a legacy for the next generation. Their children are also now involved, and I also took the pattern from my own mother. These were just teas consumed in rural communities for years, but we had the audacity to believe they could actually find a platform on a global space.”
Phaahla also said introducing the teas to retailers required boldness and courage.
“You have to be bold enough to believe that you deserve a space on the shelf. Even when you're faced with doubt or rejection, you have to keep showing up. It's that belief in your value and your product that keeps you going.”
The business’s entire production now takes place in Marble Hall, Sekhukhune district, on a farm her grandfather left behind.
Seven rondavels have been repurposed into a tea processing facility – one for drying, another for blending, and another for packaging. Their main products, based on traditional Bapedi teas, are Tepane Black Bush Tea and Diya Red Root Tea.
“We documented and standardised what was once done indigenously to make the business commercially viable. We’re trying to build a legacy in our community focused on using our natural assets, natural skills, and acknowledging our heritage. Beyond just tea, we aim to build a sustainable economy.”
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