From muffins to millions: KZN baker aims to rise to the top

WHEN Njabulo Sithole made his first batch of muffins using a pre-mix, he had no idea that his love for baking would snowball into a booming business, with products now selling like hot cakes at Pick n Pay and Spar.

What began as a hobby in his home kitchen in the rural area of Maphephetheni near Inanda Dam has risen into a thriving enterprise called Bakers Creationz, a business that’s now become his bread and butter.

“Whenever I bought cakes, I would always find something that I wasn't happy with and that I would like to tweak,” he recalls. “Then I got to a point where I was able to develop my own recipes that I was preparing for my family and friends, and it just grew from there.”

Now, Sithole is among the final 16 contestants in the Nedbank Pitch & Polish competition, where entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas for a chance to win a sweet R1 million prize, including access to mentorship and entrepreneurial training.

His baking journey started abroad, in the UK in the early 2000s, after he left KwaZulu-Natal to work in a food manufacturing plant. He ended up sharing a house with fellow South Africans, where everyone took turns cooking, and he quickly learned his way around the kitchen.

Sithole jokes that he moved from food to cakes because he “fell in love” with baking.

“I started baking while I was there, just playing around,” he says. “And then when I got home, I continued with baking and that's when I realised the potential for it becoming a real business.”

Back in South Africa, Sithole began selling his cakes and even his son who was in primary school became involved in the business.

“My son was the first salesperson,” he says with a laugh. “He was selling muffins and pancakes at his school. But they always ran out before he reached school. He was enjoying it because he was making a commission. Then I ended up recruiting more school children to sell. They would sell the cakes at R2 and they would make 50 cents commission. And I would also make 50 cents because the production cost was R1.”

Sithole saved every penny to buy proper equipment and convert his kitchen into a small bakery. Today, his business has grown far beyond his home; he now operates a production facility in the same rural community and employs 30 people.

His signature masterpiece? The snowball.

“We sell about 8 000 snowballs a week,” he says, his voice dropping into a dreamy tone. “The traditional snowball is a hard cake. Ours is based on a sponge cake, and not just any sponge cake, a very fluffy and soft sponge cake. We fill it with buttercream. On the outside, it still looks like the old traditional one, but when you touch it, that’s when you realise that it’s something different. And then when you bite, that’s when you realise that no, it’s way more different. And of course, when you taste it, you do not enjoy any other snowball.”

Sithole’s snowballs come in a variety of colours and flavours, including chocolate, vanilla and raspberry. His product range also includes muffins, Swiss rolls and rainbow cakes, but the snowball remains the undisputed star.

“I still eat a few snowballs every day,” he says, admitting that the last one was a raspberry flavour, just before chatting to the Independent on Saturday.

As he waits for the next stage of the Nedbank Pitch & Polish competition, the first round aired on August 5, Sithole hopes to crack the top 8 and ultimately take the top prize. If he wins, he plans to invest in more equipment, increase production, and expand his reach beyond KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng to the rest of the country.

Sithole started out as a young man wanting to become a hip-hop artist and music producer, but says that he is now tuned into baking, not sound.  And his message to other creatives? “Whatever idea you have, you don’t have to perfect it in order to start. Start the way it is, as raw as it is. The rest you’ll figure out on the way.”