Ep6: Noodles without borders: bringing miso to Mzansi

Lu-ise Hattingh and Ruan Botha are a great example of the power and value of travel. After spending time in Japan, they fell in love with the culture and food. As all great entrepreneurs do, they also took the opportunity to learn about the Japanese approach to consumer brands. That curiosity eventually sparked a business idea they brought back home.

Today, Lu-ise and Ruan are rolling out Market Kokoro franchise stores in South Africa and especially the Western Cape, tapping into the existing Market Kokoro infrastructure in South Africa and adding their particular flavour of experiential retail. If you love the thought of cooking your off-the-shelf noodles in the store, then Market Kokoro is for you.

In bringing miso to Mzansi, one of the biggest insights is about the importance of meeting customers where they are, both in terms of tastes and locations.

On episode 6 of The Finance Ghost Plugged in with Capitec, Lu-ise and Ruan share the journey behind building a cross-cultural brand.

Episode 6 covers:

• How travelling sparked the idea for Market Kokoro – and how this married couple turned a dream to bring this culture and food back home into a working business
• Why their unique mix of skills (Ruan as an attorney and Lu-ise with a background in film and hospitality) lead to success
• The background to Market Kokoro in South Africa and their involvement with the business
• What makes the retail landscape in Cape Town different from Johannesburg – and how they adapt to each
• Why additional sources of income are crucial while getting a business off the ground
• The benefit of tapping into governmental organisations to help launch in a specific city
• The consumer licensing opportunity in South Africa and how Japan’s model inspired their approach

Chapters

• (00:00:00) - Businesses in South Africa
• (00:00:32) - Market Kokoro
• (00:01:28) - A Taste of Japan
• (00:05:04) - Jetro
• (00:05:41) - This Chinese Couple Captured Her To Japan The First Time
• (00:06:40) - How to get out of your legal rut
• (00:08:30) - Mixing Acting and Retail
• (00:12:38) - How to Win Your Love Life
• (00:13:17) - 7 Pro Tips for Being in Business Together With Your Wife
• (00:16:59) - When You Set Up Your Love Shop
• (00:17:36) - A Taste of Market Kokoro in South Africa
• (00:18:48) - Market Kokoro South Africa
• (00:24:29) - On Working Full-Time
• (00:26:15) - Starting a Business: The Secret to Success
• (00:27:36) - How to start a business in South Africa
• (00:29:34) - Cape Town vs Joburg: The retail environment
• (00:33:38) - Interview
• (00:34:26) - West Grow: Our support for business in Cape Town and Joburg
• (00:37:43) - North Africa's consumer product licensing culture
• (00:38:57) - Economist
• (00:41:03) - Anime and Pop Culture in South Africa
• (00:44:45) - Podcaster: Can Capitec Help My Business?
• (00:47:03) - Interview