Walk the talk for community empowerment

When Nobuntu Tintelo founded Vellies Ville in 2017, she envisioned more than a leather shoe business.

Based in Pretoria, her company has grown into a platform for empowerment, creativity, and community upliftment rooted deeply in South African craftsmanship.

“We make leather shoes for adults and children,” Tintelo said proudly. 

“We work with traditional leaders. We establish what they want in the leather space. For instance, we have a couple of guys that we mentored and trained on school shoemaking in the village of Emalangeni in Lusikisiki.”

“Sometimes you can help someone to make something,” she explains, “but they can have a challenge accessing markets. So what we do is we take their products to exhibitions. We love to work with communities and help people realise their dreams in the manufacturing industry.”

Tintelo’s entrepreneurial journey began after a decade in government. 

“I ventured into business and someone introduced me to the leather industry,” she recalls.

Support from SEDFA

Her partnership with the Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA) – now the Small Enterprise Development and Finance Agency (SEDFA) - was instrumental in expanding her business. 

“I worked a lot with SEDA,” she notes. “They introduced me to a programme called the Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN) and at least now I am part of a bigger community of entrepreneurs. Sometimes the journey of entrepreneurship can be lonely, but if you are in a network you can have a bigger vision.”

With SEDA’s support, Vellies Ville reached international platforms. “SEDFA helped me get onto Amazon in 2019, but unfortunately in 2020 COVID-19 happened so that didn’t go too far. When I wanted to resuscitate my business in 2021, they helped me with some coaching and they also exposed me to GEN (Global Entrepreneurship Network), which helped me rethink and refocus. After that, I have never looked back.”

GEN is a global platform operating in over 200 countries that aims to make it easier for entrepreneurs to start and scale-up a business. It brings together entrepreneurs, investors, researchers, policymakers and support organisations to foster collaboration, innovation and strengthen entrepreneurial ecosystems worldwide.

Reaching international markets

Today, her company employs 50 people and participates in trade fairs across the continent. 

“We attend various exhibitions across Africa. Recently we were in eSwatini for an international trade fair. We had partners and team members representing us there. Even now, I am still part of SEDFA — they help me with marketing and I also attend some of their webinars to access more markets,” Tintelo said.

“We haven’t started selling in those countries yet, but we are exploring them. We believe we have exhausted South Africa, so we are venturing out.”

Despite progress, challenges persist. 

With South Africa hosting the G20 in November 2025, local entrepreneurs like Tintelo have an exciting opportunity to showcase their businesses on the global stage. 

The G20 platform brings together leaders from the world’s largest economies to discuss trade, investment, and development. This international attention could open doors for Vellies Ville to access new markets, attract foreign partnerships, and further its mission of empowering communities through leather craftsmanship.

Vellies Ville’s mission goes beyond profit — it’s about creating pathways for others.

Visit www.velliesville.co.za or call +27 73 243 7734 for more information.

For more information on SEDFA, visit www.sedfa.org.za or call (086) 010-3703 / (012) 748-9600. You call also send an email to info@sedfa.org.za