A 23-year-old blogger, entrepreneur, fashion enthusiast and the “next” Elon Musk. The Newcastle Express this week chatted to Seloleko Khumalo who has a creative mind and who strikes a balance between being an introvert and an extrovert.
NEWCASTLE EXPRESS (NE): Who exactly is Seloleko Khumalo?
SELOLEKO KHUMALO (SK): Seluleko is neither an introvert nor an extrovert. I just know how to balance those two features. I am a Gemini, I have a creative mind. I love fashion and I have good taste in music. I do not have a specific genre, as long as the music is good. I am reserved and chilled.
NE: What is a typical day in your life like?
SK: I am usually at home on the internet always looking for opportunities online. I love expanding my knowledge. I believe if you use the internet correctly there is so much knowledge that can be gained. Personal growth is key.
NE: Tell us more about your family.
SK: I was raised by my grandmother from the age of about seven. She is my teacher and my guardian. My mother unfortunately passed away a long time ago. My grandmother taught me all my entrepreneurial values, ethics and taught me about God.
NE: Where and what did you study?
SK: I studied at the University of Pretoria but I did not finish. I have a short concentration span so I felt as if that route of my life was taking too long.
NE: You recently developed an app. Tell us more.
SK: The app is called Order Café. It is similar to Uber Eats, but I wanted it to be something specific for Newcastle, so that is how I began developing my own app. I started in July last year. It took a while. I had to get funds to obtain certain features. Right now it is still a website application and not a mobile app. I need to do some more work on it and then it can be converted into a mobile app. You can search Order Café on Google and you will find it.
NE: What was the inspiration behind this app?
SK: I was speaking to my cousin one day and he suggested that something of this sort would be really cool for Newcastle. The idea then stuck and Order Café was born.
NE: How do you plan on getting people to use it?
SK: I plan on getting through to people through Facebook since many residents use Facebook and word of mouth. Using my friends as distributors of the message, I have to support them as well.
NE: Where do you see yourself in five years’ time?
SK: I really see myself building a huge skyscraper in Newcastle. I also want to have my own headquarters. I have a group company called Service Group, I would very much love for the headquarters to be here in Newcastle. I want to be the person who champions the process of developing the town. I believe it has potential and we as young people will develop the city. We will bring a lot of investment opportunities to our town and make this a digital city.
NE: Who inspires you and why?
SK: A lot of people and events inspire me. I will be selfish and say that I inspire myself because at the end of the day I am the one who makes decisions and I am in charge of my life. Me being able to come from a middle-class background and seeing my grandmother sacrifice so much for me has taught me a lot.
NE: When you are not busy developing apps, what do you do?
SK: I am a blogger I love fashion. I have been blogging about fashion for six years now. I check out social media and read spiritual, self-development and autobiography books.
NE: Favourite destination?
SK: Greece. I feel their brand is godly. The buildings are beautiful. I would visit Greece, Singapore and Morocco.
NE: If you were president for a day, what is the first thing that you would do?
SK: I think that I would create an event where grandmothers could be thanked. They are the leaders of majority of households. So, just giving them that platform and thanks that is what I would do.
NE: What are you reading?
SK: Life Lessons from a Brain Surgeon.
