“As a small business, you have to up your game all the time by doing something different, being authentic, being unique,” said Wati Waqainabete, owner of Wattys Attires, a micro home-based business that sells clothes and fashion accessories.
“A lot of businesses like ours are doing similar things so you need to be more creative with what you do.” For the mother of four, whose children have all married with their own families, it’s her business that now demands and lovingly gets her attention.
“I started my business with my own savings in 2018, just before COVID,” she said.
“I started with dresses and shirts, I stay home and sew. Then we decided to venture out into jewellery to complement our dresses. So we started our own jewellery line and to create less waste, we decided to use coffee pods.
“My accessories are from recycled materials like coffee pods. Also I use our local shells.”
Ms Waqainabete is helped by her daughter in law Cassandra and the two also showcase their handicrafts through the Pacifique Artisans Collective at the Flea Market in Suva, run by mother and daughter team Carolyn Ah Koy and Shakira Macdonald.
“We are thankful to them for reaching out to us SMEs, they are really doing a great job promoting our stuffs,” Ms Waqainabete said.
