La Vie Herbs (Pty) Ltd
What does your company do?
La Vie Herbs (Pty) Ltd grows 25 different herbs and spinach on our farm in the Free State.
We supply fresh herbs to Checkers in 3 Provinces and Lesotho.
Our team loads a Checkers truck on Tuesdays and Thursdays every week of the year since September 2020.
We also sell fresh herbs and herb seedlings via Instagram to the public
What is your biggest success?
In 2018, I started to grow herbs on our farm and sell them at local markets. My success came in 2020 when I got a contract from Checkers to supply 25 different herbs and spinach to them. We supply to a Freshmark depot in Bloemfontein and they distribute it to the Checkers shops in the Free State, North West, Northern Cape and Lesotho.
When I first started to supply to Checkers, my team consisted of only 2 female workers in 1 pack room.
It was very hard work and dedication to deliver the orders.
Today, La Vie Herbs (Pty) Ltd employ 9 female workers and 3 male workers in 3 pack rooms.
Quality control is of the utmost importance and we strive to supply the best quality product possible.
What has been your biggest hurdle?
Our biggest hurdle was to get a correct balance between supply and demand.
We must plant the correct quantities of the 25 different herbs to meet the demand of orders from Checkers. We also have to plant the correct varieties of each herb to suit the hot and dry climate of the Free State.
It is also a big challenge to do pest control in a way that is not harmful to the environment.
We have succeeded in this by applying a weekly pest control plan to prevent pests.
