Class act as Lukho starts own store

He was in high school when he started working at a bottlestore and he worked for the same company for the past 15 years.

But today Lukho Ntintishe opens his own store in King William’s Town.

Starting as a sweeper and rising to packer, then cashier then store manager, Ntintishe built up a wealth of knowledge during his years of experience working for a well-known liquor outlet in East London.

He resigned in January to start his own business, Massive Liquor, in Buffalo Road opposite the Renault dealership.

“I had reached the ceiling at the company where I was working.

“There was no way I could’ve been considered as an area manager, because many of those had a stake in the business so for me, there was no room for growth.

“After three years of being a manager, I needed something new, something that would challenge me and starting my own venture has been exactly that,” he said.

The former Hudsonian said although he had learnt a lot about the business in his tenure as an employee, there were factors like pricing and stock purchasing that he had never been exposed to.

“I started working in 2003 while I was in high school, doing holiday jobs, making money to sustain my rugby tournaments and myself because my dad passed on when I was nine, so I always tried to alleviate any financial strain for my mom,” he said.

“Even when I was doing my diploma in hospitality, I still continued to work at the liquor store until I discovered that what I was hoping to achieve through hospitality – working with people – I was already doing as a cashier.

“In 2007 I was employed permanently and I never looked back, with the dream that one day I would own a liquor store of my own.”

Ntintishe said he identified King William’s Town as a suitable area to run the business due to the many villages surrounding the small town.

“There’s a lot of potential here, as you can imagine a small town with eight Tops Stores alone, that is a clear indication of the demand in the vicinity.”

The father of four resigned in January and engaged with two relatives, who are his silent partners and have assisted in funding the business.

“I couldn’t have got this far without the support of my family, who have believed in me and invested in me.”

Ntintishe said it has been an eye-opening experience for him, working with suppliers and dealing with pricing.

“The suppliers ask which group you belong to, and when you’re independent like I am you don’t get the same discounts like those in the big groups who buy much larger quantities. But I guess that’s business,” he said.