Civil engineer stirs up creative cocktails

A 25-year-old qualified civil engineer, Tshilidzi “Chilli-B” Nyathela, has found his niche in a different industry that is less thought of or publicised – that is, cocktail mixing.

He operates throughout the country by means of mobile services, which he offers to different kinds of events such as weddings, after-tea parties, bashes and music festivals.

He has termed his mobile business enterprise Cocktail Sundays, and he continues to serve hundreds of revellers and beverage lovers in different corners of the country. “This is a new way of creating jobs for youths,” he said. “We have two assistants, but we will be employing at least five workers per province as soon as there’s a great enough demand for our services.”

He said that when he started Cocktail Sundays, it had come to his mind that people didn’t have much to do on Sundays after church, but they always wanted to have a good time to relax and refresh.

“I then came up with the idea to start the Cocktail Sundays,” he said. “I started small, but it grew in a short space of time. I started getting calls from corporate companies wanting me to do a cocktail bar at their events.”

A resident of Shayandima and Fourways in Johannesburg, Tshilidzi said that cocktail making is an art form of its own, where those involved in it enjoy the blending of different colours and fruits for rich flavours and tastes.

“I didn't really have any inspiration for making cocktails and I didn't do any course relating to this,” he revealed. “I am a dreamer, a person who is willing to learn and acquire new skills and apply them. I experimented with cocktail making and the results were amazing.”

He said that he spent three months planning and strategizing, and it was one reason why he was receiving invitations for his services. “We cater for all ages,” he said. “We have virgin cocktail as well, which means that even minors do still enjoy our drinks, since virgin ones are non-alcoholic.”

It’s quite amazing that Tshilidzi started his cocktail activities only a month ago, but he had gained wide popularity among major event organisers, such as First Lady Ya Zwithu Zwi Ntha, Edna Nkuna, who would be hosting the Zwithu Zwi Ntha 2nd Annual Show on 31 December at Koyas in Vleifontein.

“When it comes to rocking events, it’s hard to get more creative than alcoholic beverage activations,” Edna said. “The category is a competitive one, with beer brands on the other side. I choose to have a cocktail table at the VIP side of my events in that they add vogue to the area.”

Tshilidzi is available on Facebook.

News - Date: 17 December 2017

Tshifhiwa Mukwevho

Tshifhiwa Given Mukwevho was born in 1984 in Madombidzha village, not far from Louis Trichardt in the Limpopo Province. After submitting articles for roughly a year for Limpopo Mirror's youth supplement, Makoya, he started writing for the main newspaper. He is a prolific writer who published his first book, titled A Traumatic Revenge in 2011. It focusses on life on the street and how to survive amidst poverty. His second book titled The Violent Gestures of Life was published in 2014.

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