Mavusana Rooibos: Tradition in a Cup

Mavusana Premium Rooibos is more than just a local tea blend. For founder Vusi Mokoena, it’s a passion that has been passed down from one generation to the next, inviting tea-lovers to enjoy and experience tradition in a cup.

“As I always say: Just start. When you start you learn more than when you plan,” says Vusi Mokoena, founder of Mavusana Premium Rooibos.

Born and raised in Kayamandi in Stellenbosch, Vusi Mokoena grew up in a household where rooibos tea has always been the drink of choice, and drinking it was a core part of the daily routine.

“Back in the day, my grandmother and her peers used to watch The Bold and the Beautiful and Days of Our Lives in our living room. And, as kids, we had the mandate of making tea for the guests,” says Vusi. From making rooibos tea for his grandmother and her friends to drinking it himself and launching his own brand, rooibos became a tradition passed down from his grandmother to his mother and now to Vusi himself.

Brewing the Concept

After doing some research to find out how most people prefer to drink their rooibos, Vusi found that the response was almost always the same: strong. From this, the concept of Mavusana Premium Rooibos was born. “I collaborated with a friend and we realised that we share the same vision for the brand,” Vusi explains. “We poured our faith and beliefs into developing a custom blend of rooibos that makes a stronger, bolder cup.”

Having first been introduced by Vusi to the community of Kayamandi through door-to-door sales, Mavusana Rooibos is now being sold to several companies in Stellenbosch and nationwide.

However, the path to today was no easy feat. “The first, biggest challenge was funding. Starting out, we had to make a big procurement of rooibos and packaging. This meant borrowing money to start out.

“Another challenge was convincing restaurant chains, guest houses and shops to stock our tea,” says Vusi. “Luckily, over the past three years, we’ve managed to build a network of loyal customers and we supply our individually wrapped teabags and premium rooibos boxes to several companies in Stellenbosch, and even elsewhere in the country.”

No Compromises

While being proud of their success thus far, Vusi acknowledges that sales remain an ongoing challenge, as he and his team compete against commercial brands with high volumes and low profit margins.

“As we grow our market, we’ll be able to produce in greater volume, and then we can be more competitive,” Vusi shares. “Our business is still very small, so we need to sell people on our story and the quality of our product.”

Luckily for him, it’s not difficult to sell a product like Mavusana Rooibos with its history of innovation. Instead of adding to its rooibos blend to stand out against competitors, Mavusana Rooibos’s bold taste is achieved by keeping it simple.

Vusi explains that some components of the rooibos plant turn into fine dust when the blend is made. Although this dust has little flavour, commercial brands tend to include it in their blends. Mavusana Rooibos, however, makes no compromises when it comes to quality in taste.

“We don’t include the Rooibos plant’s fine dust, as we aim to make the strongest blend possible,” says Vusi. “This means we do not compromise on quality and can consistently provide stronger and more flavourful rooibos tea. Our blend is not bitter-strong; instead it is more balanced, naturally sweet, and powerful.”

Stellenbosch’s Top Choice

While Vusi dreams of Mavusana Rooibos one day being the number one rooibos brand in South Africa, his current goal is for it to become the household name of rooibos in Stellenbosch – among tourists as well as locals.

“We are also aiming for Stellenbosch’s tourist market,” he says. “We don’t want any guest to leave this town without a box of Mavusana Rooibos to take home.”

Currently, Mavusana Rooibos has two freelance staff members who assist with packaging and delivering the batches. However, as Vusi grows his business, he aims to employ more people from the local community and do business sustainably.

“Sustainability is key to our aspirations. We envisage a fully sustainable supply chain, from farm to cup. But it will take a long time to get there. For now, we are focusing on growing our business and pushing greater volumes of premium rooibos.”