MALAIKA MAHLATSI | Don't condemn Drip founder

A week ago, a founder and CEO of the sneaker brand, Drip, announced that the company had been placed under liquidation.

In an internal memo that circulated on social media, Lekau Sehoana informed Drip staff that their employment contracts had been terminated and that all existing Drip outlets would also be closed with immediate effect. Sehoana stated that an appointed liquidator would take over all Drip assets and operations.

The liquidation of Drip follows a ruling by the Johannesburg high court awarding a sequestration order to Wideopen Platform, an advertising agency that is owed more than R20m by the sneaker brand. The agency, a subsidiary of Primedia Unlimited, is an outdoor media company that specialises in large-format advertising such as mega building wraps, digital outdoor and construction site advertising, among others.

The R20m debt comes from Drip’s huge billboard advertising – a marketing tool known to be extremely expensive. According to marketing agency, Pinpoint Media, billboards can cost up to R350,000 a month depending on factors such as location. Numerous people have criticised Sehoana for such a huge advertising campaign, arguing that the associated costs were too high for a start-up like Drip.

But while some criticism towards Sehoana has been reasonable, there has also been very unfortunate and nasty commentary about the liquidation of Drip. In one particularly unfortunate post that went viral on X,someone asked what the difference was between Drip and Bathu, a local sneaker brand seemingly doing exceptionally well.

Many of the comments compared the personalities of the owners, with Theo Baloyi, the owner of Bathu, being said to be a true businessman whose focus is on his enterprise, while Sehoana was characterised as a “hustler” who associated himself with celebrities and lived an affluent life.

This, it was argued, that Baloyi is a qualified accountant who had extensive experience in the private sector, while Sehoana does not possess post-matric qualifications. Others went on to raise the issue of Sehoana’s acrimonious divorce, arguing that it was the starting point of his problems. The comments were brutal – including those that in different circumstances, would have had value.

As I followed the discussions, I couldn’t help but think that there was something profoundly inhumane about kicking a man when he was down. It is one thing to use Drip as a lesson on what not to do in a start-up, but another to mock and deride its owner, who has already lost so much in so many ways, in full view of the world.

Perhaps, as a global speaker and investor, Vusi Thembekwayo, argued in response to the viral condemnation of Sehoana, age has made giving grace my default. I don’t know enough about running a start-up to determine what mistakes Sehoana made.

But I know his journey enough to know that some mistakes are understandable. When you endured the poverty and dehumanisation that Sehoana did in his childhood, it’s only reasonable that in adulthood, you want a different life. This often translates to a flashy life.

This happens because we live in a world where respect for people is tied to what they have and who they associate with. I’ve seen this happen to far too many black people to ever believe it’s a character flaw unique to Sehoana.

Poverty dehumanises people so much that when they escape it, the party never ends. It leaves a psychological wound that does not heal for many and materialism becomes the bandage.

The need to prove yourself is also inherent – and this can often lead to bad financial decisions. It happens to many. This is why I have compassion for Sehoana. This is why my default is to give him grace.