Startup Story

Cheri & Auti Fashions is a clothing fashion label established in 2021 by Kearoma Rantao in Gabarone, Botswana. A Jazz artist, singer, and performing artist, Kearoma decided during COVID-19 to start a fashion line called Cheri & Auti Fashions. Today, the business is an online retail store and has been making and selling mainly women’s casual wear since it launched.

LoA spoke to Kearoma Rantao about her journey from music and entertainment to the world of entrepreneurship, and her ambitions for the future.

What does your company do?

At Cheri and Auti Fashions, we design and make clothing mostly for women and sell them in an online store.

I have always had a dream growing up as a young girl to own a fashion line/brand. So when Covid happened and the music stopped, that is when I took an opportunity to kickstart the Cheri Fashions business.

What inspired you to start your company?

Well, I have always had a dream growing up as a young girl to own a fashion line/brand. So when Covid happened and the music stopped that is when I took an opportunity to kickstart the Cheri Fashions business, since I had all the time to plan, sit and work on designs for the new line. It worked!

Why should anyone use your service or product?

Cheri & Auti Fashions is a woman-owned business, started from the artist's Covid relief fund from the Ministry of Arts & Culture in Botswana. It's an original idea that I've had since my youth days. Today, we have an online store that can reach beyond Gaborone and our borders. It is a growing brand too, set and run by a woman.

Tell us a little about your team:

We have a small growing team, and the most amazing thing about it is we are always ready to give the customer what they want. We are looking forward to growing our store, and the brand and adding more exciting merchandise to our line.

“We have a small growing team, and the most amazing thing about it is we are always ready to give the customer what they want. We are looking forward to growing our store, and the brand and adding more exciting merchandise to our line.”

Share a little about your entrepreneurial journey. And do you come from an entrepreneurial background?

I grew up sewing, my mom sold clothing, and she used to make jerseys for school children in Lobatse. My Aunt was once a great fashion designer, my grandmother was a tailor, and I used to like helping her with her Singer sewing machine as a little girl. I would make dolls with pieces of leftover fabric and make their clothes out of the pieces left over. So I have always had a love for making clothes. I also did art at school and loved drawing and sketching outfits. I studied a business and accounting Diploma, customer care and public relations, and bookkeeping under my Hotel Management studies and other courses that enabled me to have faith in going ahead with this clothing business. International Business Communications plays a big role in going about it and also communications with customers, my suppliers, and everyone else.

What are your future plans and aspirations for your company?

The plan is to grow the brand, manufacture the merchandise, and grow beyond Hustlers clothing. As a woman, I'd love Cheri & Auti to cater to both men and women and introduce Cheri & Auti toiletries, i.e. sanitary pads for women, facials, fashion accessories, shoes, and Cheri beverages. We do have bigger and better plans for the brand and would like to grow it beyond Botswana and Africa.

“We do have bigger and better plans for the brand and would like to grow it beyond Botswana and Africa.”

What gives you the most satisfaction being an entrepreneur?

Well, it’s not that easy but I'd say, do what you want, and be flexible, it drives you to work hard and focus since no one pays you. It’s important that everyone is making an effort and is compensated for their work. Running your own business makes you a better person. You stop relying on others and it makes you a better person every day as the challenges you face daily are for you to solve, and that's a big responsibility.

What's the biggest piece of advice you can give to other women looking to start-up?

It's never easy to start, we are all scared at first to start small. But that's the way to go. You start and you learn every day from the challenges you meet. There is nothing a mother or a woman cannot do. God has given us the strength to stand for ourselves and our children. Do not wait for anyone to tell you when to start, if that's what you want go for it and do it. Women are gifted and women are saviors.

Find out more:

Email: africameropa@gmail.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cherifashions?mibextid=ZbWKwL

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cheri_autifashions_?igsh=MWpqMXNkMGxuMTdmMw

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@cherifashions?_t=8ohlqb23qx4&_r=1

Why LoA loves it…

Sometimes life creates new opportunities to realize long-held ambitions, and that is what happened for Kearoma Rantao during the Covid pandemic. She took the opportunity to reset her career path and turn her skillset into a business opportunity that today is her main focus. Her clothing brand is the realization of a dream and is now on its growth path to what Kearoma hopes will be a prosperous new future. — Melanie Hawken, founder & ceo, Lionesses of Africa