‘Ouma Hotdog’ … Serving With Warmth and Laughter

THERE is no way that anyone can work around the Windhoek CBD without knowing who ‘Ouma Hotdog’ is. The same can be said for those who live in the capital city. Lively, energetic and with the warmest welcome for customers who flock to her hotdog stand for some of the tastiest lunches.

While her customers may only see the bubbly persona that greets them with her affectionate “hello lovey!” daily, many may not know Emma Motinga Isaacks who came from humble beginnings.

Born at Berseba in the Karas region, Isaacks was raised by her unemployed mother who struggled to make ends meet with her brood of 11 children.

“I am the second eldest daughter of 11 children of which three passed away. We’re only eight now,” she tells me. She went to primary school at Berseba and later finished high school at Mariental in the Hardap region.

As a teenager, Isaacks quickly learnt that helping her family through poverty would mean making her own sacrifices and working hard. She took up a cleaning job for just R7 at the time. “I saw my background and that I needed to do something about it. God helped me and I started to take care of my siblings,” she says. Today, she runs her business with one of her sons who is her co-manager as well as two of her cousins.

As we walked into a café near to her canteen for our interview, Isaacks greets everyone along the way with her usual enthusiasm. All of the people greet back cheerfully with some giggling profusely as she calls them all sorts of pet names. This personality shines through during our talk and it makes me ask her what keeps her so happy.

“One thing that I learnt is that in a day I meet so many people. These people have marital problems, personal problems or even coming from court and at the end of the day, you have to take care when serving these people because you never know their troubles,” she says. Everyone knows her for her “hello my love” greeting and she is very proud of what has now become her trademark. “When I greet some customers like that, they respond ‘I am not your love’, but even if they are angry I’ll just laugh it off.

While she is hailed by many for her excellent customer service, Isaacks says that as a country, Namibia has a long way to go in terms of good customer service. For her, however, her customers have become her family. “When I hear that one of my customers has died, it really touches me and I feel as though I’ve lost my my own family.”

A woman of faith and deep religious convictions, Isaacks is also passionate about gospel music and she sings with one of her sons and her cousins whom she also works with in her family business.

“I’m a very good singer, you know. I once sang at an event where a little child called out to their mother, ‘Mommy, look, it’s Ouma Hotdog singing’,” she recalls with a hearty chuckle. “We sing at weddings, funerals and other events.”

The group has a CD out already, titled ‘Kom Ons Sing Saam’ ,which translates to ‘Let’s Sing Together’.

At times, one will spot a youthful brass band stationed next to her canteen and performing for Isaacks customers. “Those boys are all street children from different areas,” she says of the boys who occasionally provide entertainment for her customers.

While ‘Ouma Hotdog’ has been selling her hotdogs and burgers since 1995 with only N$450 to start, she has big dreams for her future in business. “You know, I just want business space, a building or something where I can set up my own ‘Burger Palace’. The only thing delaying her is the availability of capital. That is all I’m asking for.” The tough economic climate that has been prevailing has affected Isaacks’ business but she is hopeful that things will get better. “During the last three years, business dropped drastically but I know that things will get better this year.”

She advises Namibian women to be fearless in pursuing their dreams and to remain strong no matter their situation. “Namibian women should be strong. Not only for ourselves, but for our children.”

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