Clay products from Gwayi River to homes all over the world

USING a special clay that is readily available in selected parts of Gwayi River, about 250 kilometres along the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls Highway, a team of husband and wife play two distinct roles that bring food on the table for their family of three children.

The wife, Barbara Masango, is the crafty one who makes colourful flower pots, bird feeders and birdbaths while the husband, Godfrey Sibanda, spends his time at a permanent selling point along the Victoria Falls Road where all the wares are on full display for motorists.

The cheerful Sibanda says it is a family business that has sustained them for well over 15 years and there is nothing else he would do with his time than to interact with potential clients that pass through his stall every day and convince them to buy.

“We use a special soil that is commonly referred to as terracotta, which we get from the Gwayi River and grind into fine particles then mix with water to form a strong clay that my wife then uses to make the flower pots, bird feeders and bird baths,” he told the news crew.

“My wife is very talented in making all this merchandise that comes in various shapes and sizes and my job is to sell our stuff here on the highway.

“It’s a family business that we have been running for the last 15 years to take care of our three children. “I spend seven days a week, from early morning to late evenings each day here on the highway selling our wares and I get to interact with different people on a daily basis as they stop to inquire about prices. Many later buy one or two, ” explained Sibanda.

As luck would have it, a gentleman driving a top of the range 4×4 vehicle stops and jokingly reminds Sibanda if he put aside the US$10 birdbath that he asked him to keep two days back while driving to Victoria Falls on business.

Sibanda rushes to fetch the birdbath under a makeshift shed constructed to keep rain out, hands it over to the customer and is paid.

A majority of his clients for the last couple of years are now Zimbabweans who pass through on their way to Victoria Falls compared to 15 years ago when he associated the word “tourists” only with foreign visitors visiting the Majestic Falls or the Hwange National Park and other places of interest in Matabeleland North.

“More and more people drive past here visiting Victoria Falls or Hwange National Park and to us a tourist is no longer the white man or woman from overseas,” he said.

“Zimbabweans coming from Kariba, Masvingo, Marondera and other cities now make up the majority of our clients when they pass through here to visit Victoria Falls for holidays.

“Business is a bit slow at the moment, maybe because it’s the beginning of the year, but we expect it to pick up from next month. Our prices range from US$1 for the smallest flower pots to US$60 for the biggest wares.

“Our products are strong and durable as we believe that word of mouth is the best way to market our stuff as one happy customer will tell others to look for us when they drive along the Vic Falls Highway,” he added.