Order With Me clothes from Angola help Namibians earn a living

Traders earn up to N$6 000 a month selling pre-loved clothes

IMELDA AMBONDO and DONALD MATTHYS

In Namibia, where unemployment sits at 36.9% according to the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA), many people are struggling to make ends meet.

For some, the answer has been thrifting – buying and selling second-hand clothes -to earn a living.

Business Review reported that, in Windhoek’s townships, the trade has grown into more than just a business. It helps pay school fees, buy food, and support households. Niita Amunyela (39), a resident of Greenwell Matongo, sets up her clothing stall every day, hoping for customers. On a good day, she earns between N$300 and N$350, with monthly earnings ranging from N$2 000 to N$3 000.

“Sometimes you go home with nothing. And sometimes you receive products that are not the ones you ordered,” Amunyela said.

Most traders, including Amunyela, source their clothes from Angola, a key supply route for Windhoek’s market. Despite the challenges, the business is low risk and provides a steady income for many households.“Clothes don’t get rotten like food, so you don’t get a loss when they stay long,” she explains.

Like many women in the informal sector, Amunyela is the breadwinner in her household of four, making the success of her stall critical for her family’s wellbeing. She says that women’s clothing sells faster than men’s, making it her main focus.

Across town in Okuryangava another one of the country’s mixed settlements which nestles both a shanty town and decent houses, Esther Hafeni, also 39, shares a similar story.

 As the sole provider for her two children and a younger sister in Grade 9, she relies heavily on her thrifting business to sustain her household.

Hafeni earns between N$150 and N$300 daily, with monthly earnings ranging from N$3 500 to N$4 000 when business is good.

Yet the uncertainty of daily sales weighs heavily on her. 

“Sometimes I go back home without selling anything,” she said.

Like Amunyela, Hafeni imports her clothing from Angola, focusing mainly on women’s dresses, which she says are her best-selling items. Her motivation for entering the business also comes from a love of fashion.

“I have a passion for fashion, and everyone needs clothing, especially women,” she says.

Namasiku Simataa (35) who lives in Wanaheda, says thrifting helps  provide for her 13-year-old son while also supporting extended family members.

“Being the only provider, I also have to send money back home to my mother,” she explains.

Simataa’s daily income ranges from N$200 to N$300, with monthly earnings fluctuating between N$4 000 and N$5 500, depending on how well the business performs. Her supply comes from Ondangwa, but like many traders, she struggles with slow business days.

For 28-year-old Rauha Edmund, her business represents a slightly different side of the trade. Unlike the others, thrifting is not her full-time job.

A full-time employee at the Roads Authority, Edmund started the business in January this year as a part-time side hustle. So far, she says the business has been promising.

“I think it’s going well. The profit is good, no complaints,” she says.

Because she balances work and business, Edmund earns about N$300 to N$400 per day, generating approximately N$6 000 in monthly profit. However, managing the business alone remains her biggest challenge since she has not yet hired someone to run the stall while she is at work.

Edmund is also a breadwinner, living with her four-month-old baby.

MILLIONS ON ORDER WITH ME

Data from the Namibian Statistics Agency shows that Namibians spend millions of dollars per year on importing second-hand clothing. South Africa and Botswana currently top as the country’s biggest import markets.

In November last year alone, Namibia imported about N$1 million worth of worn clothing. In 2023, about N$4.4 million clothing was imported for a total quantity of 164,732 kg, while in 2024 approximately N$6.9 million worth of second-hand clothing was imported. 

Another operator of a thrifting business, Paramount Stitch, in Windhoek is 31-year old Pius Djuulume. He says on a monthly basis he can generate about N$3 000 to N$6 000 depending on the month.

“I learned about the business of thrifting from my mother. I  did a course for three years at a college but due to financial problems, I had to drop out and then continued with the thrifting business. But it’s no longer about making money, it’s about making a legacy and keeping the business going,” Djuulume says.

His aim is to provide jobs for at least 40 to 50 people due to the high level of jobless youth in Namibia. He says there is potential in the sector.

“Yes, thrifting is a suitable business in Namibia because not only does it generate profit but it also expands in creating job opportunities to the people that are not employed,” Djuulume said.

However, the challenges facing the sector are the lack of operational spaces and the cost of getting clothing items.

Currently, most of their items are being sourced from Okuryangava, Havana Four-Way and Black Chain mall in Katutura from other re-sellers.

“All we need from the government is at least marketing space, like a warehouse where we can expand our thrifting business. That way, we can expand the business and provide jobs for many other people,” Djuulume said. 

Another issue, he says, are the high costs of importing. He says the majority of operators don’t follow the proper rules due to this. 

“The majority of the people that do thrifting in Namibia don’t do it in a legal way because the Namibia Revenue Agency (Namra)’s fees are high. They are so  high to a point whereby they will charge you a leg and an arm for the things that you want to order and bring inside to come sell,” he said. 

He added “at the end of the day, you don’t make any profit from your items. You cannot even make half the amount of money you used to order the items because Namra co-prices are very very high.”

NamRA has been  engaging sessions with small-scale business operators commonly known as “Order With Me” traders.

Last year, NamRA boss Sam Shivute said Shivute said the organisation wants to listen to traders’ concerns and not simply dictate how services should be offered. 

“You cannot address problems you do not understand. You understand your challenges as operators, and we want an open dialogue so we can find solutions together,” he said. 

LET THE THRIVE

Economist Dr Omu Kakujaha-Matundu says while formalising the sector could be helpful, it is a double-edged sword. 

“What we should know is that formalisation comes with costs. If it ain’t broken don’t fix it. So formalisation could introduce unnecessary red tape that could increase costs to these second-hand clothing traders,” he said.

Kakujaha-Matundu said if the government aims to collect revenue from small traders such as thrifters, it should find other ways to do so.

“It is better for the government to forego that puny revenue and let that market thrive and employ more people. The government could recoup that revenue from VAT as more people will have purchasing power,” Kakujaha-Matundu says.