Senqu - embarking on an accelerated growth trajectory

31 OCTOBER 2023

Senqu clothing targets aggressive future growth

Evolving with the market, Senqu clothing is maintaining a strong South African heritage and embarking on an accelerated growth trajectory. Senqu originated in the mid-1980s as a fly-fishing apparel brand. Throughout the 1990s and 2000s the company primarily made use of a wholesale model with clothing distributed via small independent retailers, as well as a few national chains that carried a limited range of the brand.

Fast forward to 2023 and the picture is very different. Senqu is now an increasingly well-known lifestyle clothing brand with around 70 stores across the country, and a strategy aimed at growing this footprint to approximately five stores a month in the next few months. Senqu’s journey to get to this point has been one of evolution, changing with the market and customer needs while maintaining their heritage and strong partnerships that have supported them on the way.

Rooted in Africa

The founders of Senqu were fly-fishing afficionados and named their company after the fishing paradise of the Senqu river in Lesotho, which becomes the Orange river as it crosses the border with South Africa. To appeal to a broader target market, the company shifted towards a more commercial and less highly specialised look and feel in 2005, aimed more at outdoor lifestyle in general and casual fashion. Retail stores followed and the brand has evolved from there, all the while maintaining its proud heritage.

“We were looking for more independence from our wholesale model. The brand had a few outlet stores at this point for clearing end of range products, and based on customer response to these stores, we took the decision to close the wholesale division and focus on direct retail,” says Mark Ely, Deputy Managing Director for Senqu.

“The drive behind Senqu has always been to offer a uniquely South African product range that gives our customers excellent value, and this calling has remained throughout the brand’s evolution. Most of our products are manufactured locally, and we aim to offer trendy clothing options with a uniquely local flavour,” he adds.

Rapid acceleration

Senqu was cautious about expanding too quickly and took their time over the first decade of the retail journey. This growth has ramped up significantly, and their footprint currently stands at around 70 stores, with a growth strategy of opening about 5 new stores a month. 

“While nobody can argue that the last three to five years have been a rough ride, Senqu has weathered the storm well – we are still seeing double-digit year-on-year growth and we are on track to continue. Part of this success has hinged on always staying close to customers, continuously analysing our products and product performance and changing direction based on what the data is telling us. The heart of our offering is excellent value for money without compromising on quality, and in tough economic times this appeals to a growing market segment,” says Ely.

The power of partnership

The other element of Senqu’s success is the strong partnerships it has through its parent company Gemelli, which gives Senqu the advantage of scale when it comes to bringing in raw materials, manufacturing the clothing and then retailing it in stores. As part of the Gemelli group, Senqu has also benefited from the investment of RMB Ventures, a partnership that has been instrumental in growing the business and positioning it for rapid expansion.

“Since 2018 when RMB Ventures came into the picture, our growth trajectory ramped up significantly. Where we saw a gap in the market, RMB Ventures supported us and gave us the push we needed to attack the market more aggressively. Embarking on our purpose journey with them has brought insights to light, helping us to develop new ideas and strengthen relationships within the Gemelli group,” says Ely.

“The biggest influence of partnering with RMB Ventures has been in understanding growth and where we can take our brand. Coming from a small business heritage, we worked with month-to-month turnovers and seasonal or annual targets. RMB Ventures has given us a more long-term outlook and helped us forecast our growth more accurately. Having the right advice and support has been instrumental in navigating our rapid expansion plans,” he concludes.

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