Africa’s No 1 Arts Bookstore and Publisher

Mielie
By Bongiwe Nocando

Mielie is a small innovative company specialising in authentic handbags handmade from completely recycled materials. The brainchild of Adri Schutz, Mielie was officially started on Adri’s dining room table at her home in Cape Town in 2002. Currently situated at the historic Montebello Design Centre in Newlands (close to the David Krut Bookstore and Gallery), the project is geared towards job creation in Cape Town and the promotion of arts and craft.

Mielie currently employs around eighty people, mostly women, residing in the surrounding townships of Cape Town. The organisation espouses what it terms “empowering employment”, which means allowing the women to work from home with flexible working hours, in order for them to spend more quality time with their families.

The organisation is directly influenced by its employees and seeks to make a difference in their communities by supporting various projects. Mielie now exports to countries around the globe, including Finland, New Zealand, Germany and the US.

David Krut Arts Resource is very active in its support of arts and visual literacy education. We are delighted to support Mielie by making their unique merchandise available in our bookstores at the Johannesburg Art Gallery and at the Constitutional Court in Braamfontein, Johannesburg.

Keywords: Bookstore, craft, crafts, JAG, mielie