After being told she “did not fit the profile” for manufacturing, Lindiwe Nkuna-Kgopa transformed rejection into one of South Africa’s most inspiring entrepreneurial success stories by building a business that changed the face of women-led manufacturing in Africa.
More than a decade ago, one passing remark at a women’s event changed the course of Nkuna-Kgopa’s life.
Today, the founder and chief executive of Lindiwe Sanitary Pads (LSP) has been recognised with the 2026 Veuve Clicquot Bold Woman Award for redefining what women can achieve in African manufacturing.
She recalled that a speaker at the event observed that South Africa had never had a female president and that no woman had ever owned a sanitary pad manufacturing factory at an industrial scale. While the audience moved on, Nkuna-Kgopa did not. She left determined to change that.
“An entire industry built on women’s bodies, sustained by women’s needs, and purchased by women’s money had never once been owned by a woman at industrial scale,” she recalled.
“That gap between who the industry served and who owned it is what pushed me to start LSP.”
Today, Nkuna-Kgopa leads what has become Africa’s first large-scale sanitary pad manufacturing facility owned and operated entirely by women.
Founded in 2018 in a home kitchen, Lindiwe Sanitary Pads has grown into a 4,000-square-metre factory in Centurion, Gauteng, capable of producing 800 South African Bureau of Standards-compliant sanitary pads every minute.
The business now exports to 11 African countries and employs women from previously disadvantaged communities. Through partnerships and donation programmes, it has supplied free sanitary products to more than 100,000 South African schoolgirls this year.
For Nkuna-Kgopa, the award is about far more than personal recognition.
“It’s recognition not just for me, but for every woman on our factory floor and every entrepreneur we’ve helped enter this industry through our partnerships,” she said.
The accolade, she believes, belongs as much to the women who helped build the company as it does to her, reflecting years of determination, resilience, and a shared commitment to creating opportunities for others.
Building a business against the odds
Born and raised in Limpopo, Nkuna-Kgopa became a mother while studying at university in Pretoria. Rather than allowing her circumstances to define her future, she focused on building the business she believed Africa needed.
Winning over investors, however, proved far harder than developing the vision itself.
She recalls being told by banking experts that she simply did not fit the profile of someone who could succeed in manufacturing.
“I remember telling them I would succeed, and that the real question was whether they would be part of that success story or not,” she said.
“I also asked what the profile actually entailed — and instead of throwing in the towel because I didn’t meet the requirements, I went and built myself and my business until I met the profile.”
Access to funding became one of the biggest obstacles facing the fledgling company.
As a first-time manufacturer entering an industry traditionally dominated by men, Nkuna-Kgopa struggled to convince lenders and investors to back her business. Instead, she relied on business development programmes, disciplined financial management, and relentless persistence.
“Every setback — a delayed facility, a difficult overdraft period or a stalled negotiation — was treated as something to solve, not a reason to stop,” she said.
One of the defining moments came during one of the company’s most difficult periods. With little money available, suppliers demanding payment and the future of the business hanging in the balance, Nkuna-Kgopa invited potential funders to visit her factory rather than relying solely on presentations and paperwork.
The decision changed the company’s future.
She secured R27 million in funding, enabling the business to move from a home-based operation into a modern manufacturing facility capable of supplying retailers, wholesalers, and South Africa’s National Sanitary Dignity Programme.
“Beyond the numbers, it was validation that a women-owned business in this sector could be trusted with serious capital and could deliver on it,” she said.
Manufacturing with a purpose
Today, Lindiwe Sanitary Pads employs 36 permanent staff members and another 93 workers during peak production periods, the majority of whom are women from previously disadvantaged communities.
For Nkuna-Kgopa, the factory’s greatest success lies not only in what it produces, but in the opportunities it creates.
Through a partnership with Young Women of Africa, the company has expanded into 11 African countries, helping female entrepreneurs launch and own their own sanitary pad brands while creating new pathways to economic independence.
The partnership also supports programmes that help rescue girls from child marriage and female genital mutilation, enabling them to return to school and build independent futures.
Closer to home, government partnerships and the company’s “Buy to Donate” initiative have enabled more than 100,000 South African schoolgirls to receive free sanitary products this year, helping reduce period poverty and school absenteeism.
“The sanitary pad industry exists due to women’s needs; however, for decades, the manufacturing side was predominantly male-owned,” she said.
“Building an operation owned and operated by women was about closing that gap, ensuring that the value created by an industry serving women is also captured by them as owners, decision-makers, and industrialists.”
Redefining the profile
As South Africa celebrates Women’s Month, Nkuna-Kgopa hopes her journey will encourage more women to enter industries where they have traditionally been overlooked.
“I would say: don’t wait to be told you fit the profile — build the track record that redefines what the profile looks like,” she said.
“Expect to be underestimated, and let that be fuel rather than discouragement. Learn the technical and financial fundamentals of your industry deeply, because competence is the strongest answer to doubt.”
At 43, Nkuna-Kgopa said her ambitions extend well beyond expanding one company.
She wants to leave behind an industry transformed by women’s leadership, where ownership is no longer the exception but the norm.
“I want to leave behind an industry that looks fundamentally different from the one I entered — one where African women are owners and industrialists in the menstrual economy, not only consumers,” she said.
“I want LSP’s model of manufacturing, mentorship, and market access for other women-owned brands to be replicated across the continent long after I’ve stepped back.”
If she succeeds, Nkuna-Kgopa’s greatest legacy will not simply be the factory she built, but the women who follow in her footsteps.
It will be proving that industries built around women’s needs can also be owned, led, and transformed by them.
Have thoughts on this topic or other subjects you’d like us to explore? Want to share your experiences? Reach out to me at karen.singh@nationalmg.co.za
