‘No obstacles to Hotplate growth’

While many in the diaspora remain skeptical about establishing a business in Zimbabwe, a handful have taken a leap of faith and conquered.

Anyway, there is no place like home — home is the best.

The food restaurant market has been characterised by a few names, with the dominant being found in the Simbisa Brands and the Slice chain which have grown to form a visible presence in almost every corner of the country.

Off course, KFC is now growing its presence around major cities and towns in Zimbabwe.

Nonetheless, a youthful entrepreneur, now owning an indigenous brand has taken it upon himself to test the waters and apparently mother universe is smiling back at him.

Like many other successful entrepreneurs, he never saw himself becoming a formidable force in the eatery business, growing to own a name in an apparently competitive terrain.

Consistent with the proverbial statement “life begins at 40”, three years ago the now 43 years old Ben Muneri took out to start his entrepreneurial journey in Zimbabwe.

Like what has become the norm, Muneri left Zimbabwe in 1997 after attaining a Higher National Diploma in catering at the Institute of Commercial Management, a private Hotel and catering school in Bulawayo.

“I never envisioned myself owning a restaurant line of note, it is something that came along the way and I grabbed the opportunity,” says Muneri.

Credit to him, the name Hotplate Grillhouse became synonymous with Zimbabweans from about two years ago and the company continues to grow its footprint in the country.

Hotplate Grillhouse migrated to Zimbabwe after a notable stint in South Africa.

Muneri came up with the idea after spending slightly over two decades working for the renowned Nandos and Barcelos eateries in South Africa.

After working for a considerable time in South Africa, Muneri managed to build 17 stores (in SA) given greater access to finance and cashflows from banks and his own full-time job. He sold the South African business to raise capital for his Zimbabwean project.

Upon reaching 40, driven by self-belief Muneri decided to take the bull by the horns and start his own adventure right here in Zimbabwe.

“I said now that I’m getting to 40 I should do my own thing so I stepped down from my employers.”

Currently, Hotplate has significantly spread across Zimbabwe with a footprint of 26 branches across the country.

“Over the last two years , this our third year running now and we have 26 stores on the ground now, we have outlets as far as Kadoma, Kwekwe, Victoria Falls, Mutare as well as Mhondoro it has been going well to a certain extent we appreciate the support we are getting from Zimbabweans,” he said.

But why would a whole business migrate to Zimbabwe from the greener South Africa?

According to Muneri Zimbabwe is a land with plenty of opportunities and the numerous experiences he had gained from the South African restaurants gave him the extra push to invest back home.

“After being sent to countries like Namibia and Botswana by my aforementioned employers to open stores from scratch, I told myself, I can do this for myself,” he said.

He said establishing a business in any environment is tough across the world but for him setting up an eatery business in Zimbabwe was made easy given the relevance of his product offering.

“It was just formalising what the market already knew in a formal set up and we provided that in a formal setup.”

Hotplate offers a wide range of dishes including highly sought-after indigenous cuisines.

The brand which has slowly become favourable for lower and medium income earners still has ambitions to conquer the Zimbabwean market albeit challenges that continue to present themselves in the economy.

“Starting a business in any place be it in Zimbabwe is never an easy task, there is always a challenge in every economic climate you are playing against, even in the countries with best-performing economies, there will always be challenges, logistics of registering a business getting the right people to work in your business and attracting the clientele that you desire to attract,” said Muneri.

He, however, claims it was easier for him to set up shop in Zimbabwe because of his African-oriented offering.

“We appreciate the growth that we have had in Zimbabwe through customers’ confidence in us.”

Statistically many entrepreneur businesses die in their formative years and Muneri alluded that it was all about managing perception, particularly to those operating in Zimbabwe.

“Many entrepreneurs are dying because they are quick to join the chorus that the economy is bad, the currency is not existing, they need to manage their perception better.”

Some of the best start-ups have persevered in tough conditions and Muneri implored start-ups coming up in Zimbabwe to hold on as there was a greater reward in consistency.

“If I start mentioning what is wrong we can talk all night, but it is all about what you do about it.”

Going forward Muneri said his brand was looking at opening major stores this year,
which include opening new concept stores with proper full-line restaurants with full waiter service.

Asked why he opted to invest in a destination that most people perceive negatively, Muneri said he just took advantage of the new dispensation’s Zimbabwe is open for business mantra.

“It is easy to criticise your country or find fault in the economy’s setup, what matters the most is what you do about it.”

He said many entrepreneurs are hesitant to take off because of some entrenched views that it cannot be done and his business over the years is proof that it can be done.

“There is no free-flowing country where you can just set up a business and become a millionaire, there are challenges of times, and you can face the same consequences in Zambia, South Africa, and even the United Kingdom.

“If you have confidence and the right belief you get the right support from your fellow citizens, listen and what they are asking for and you will prosper.”

Muneri was born in Kadoma, raised in Bulawayo, and spent 22 years in South Africa working in leading restaurants up to the executive level before he decided to come back and set up shops at home in 2019.-ebusinessweekly