Nombasa Mawela Is One of Dubai’s Entrepreneurs To Watch

Dream Big, Stay Humble... That’s the story of Nombasa Mawela, an entrepreneur from South Africa that is slowly but surely making her mark in Dubai. While opportunity does not always equal execution and many entrepreneurs lack the ability to capitalize in this era of golden opportunity; that's not the case with Mawela. She is one entrepreneur who knows how they can be at the forefront of their industry simply by knowing how and when to strike.

Right from the beginning, Mawela has keenly been focused on innovating, learning, training, with strong emphasis on marketing services, as well as orchestrating key partnerships to not just be a part of change, but to drive it. For Nombasa Mawela inspiration comes from her very first mentor, Ms Pam Snyman, and that is; when you find yourself with such an opportunity and platform, use it to find ways to give others the ability to experience their own unique journey whilst growing other future entrepreneurs.

She started her career after completing a BSc in Quantity Surveying from the University of Pretoria in South Africa, as a girl in safety boots and a hard hat, working for one of the “Big Five” construction companies in Africa. That’s when she was first exposed to the development elements of properties and while working there, she knew her future would be in property. She made a major switch from the construction field in 2015.

Her humble beginning from a small village of Cala, in the Eastern Cape, South Africa plays a major role in keeping her focused. She wants other young people from her village to know that the world is indeed their oyster.

In February 2017, she moved to Dubai and enrolled for her MBA at Murdoch University Dubai and this is when she got fascinated by the city where the world’s major and biggest construction of buildings takes place.

Mawela realized that she needed to seek out a way to diversify and expand herself after completing her MBA. She quickly began to build ties in the city, developing relationships with companies and individuals, fostering and maintaining relationships with all of the outlets that she had access to. She completed her certification in the UAE, which was needed to put her back in the development space and follow her plans through.

When 2021 kicked off, she decided to go out on her own. Her motto was: “From Africa to the World” and it has not come without challenges. Development  is highly competitive in Dubai, and you have the old players that have mileage and reputation in the field. She is currently studying towards being Dr Mawela (DBA) at Swiss Business School (UAE), which has played a major role in identifying and keeping up with where the world is in business, finance, and trends in general.

Nombasa Mawela, has already built an impressive resume and a successful firm in a very short span of time. She continues to close over her initial goal of 10M AED in sales transactions monthly as an individual. As the world shifts more and more to one where “perception is reality”, someone like Mawela can play an incredibly powerful role in building out massively credible footprints for African entrepreneurs in Dubai.

While these are all potential options, only time will be able to tell us what to expect of the future of development. And whatever that future may hold, expect to see Nombasa Mawela at the forefront of it.