We all know how tedious and time consuming taking a bath can be, especially in winter. And for some communities water supply is a constant struggle, but social entrepreneur Ludwick Marishane has come up with the ultimate solution – Drybath.

A bath-substituting gel designed to replace the need for soap,water and skin lotion, Drybath is applied to your skin and eliminates the need to bath. The innovative  invention not only provides a solution for the serious challenge of water scarcity in most developing communities, but it can also make life easier for campers and students alike.

Live spoke to Ludwick Marishane at the very hip Woodstock Exchange office space which is home to Headboy Industries Inc.

How did you come up with DryBath?

The product came about when a friend of mine had been lazy to bath and he made a comment about why there was no product available that someone could just apply to their bodies and not have to take a bath. After that I did research on whether there was such a product on the market and I found out there wasn’t so I decided to invent one which took me six months.

Who is your target market?

The product is targeted at corporate organisations like hotels, music festival organisers, and major global airlines. But last year it became available to household consumers. Ninety percent of it is exported with 60% being the US market, and 20% is Europe and we hope it reaches other markets as well. The sales are gradually on the up which is great for the company.

What was your first  job and how did it help you with your business?

I did an internship with Goldman Sachs in London which was great but it made me realise how much I do not like being an employee. In January 2012, I had a job with Zando with no intention of selling shoes for a very long time.I had spent time on other vacation internships as a student which have given me a lot of contacts and made my network bigger. Now that I am a CEO of my own business I find it very fullfiling and liberating although I hardly ever sleep with the non-stop work. We are working very hard at the moment to get the product in stores.

Do you think the conditions are suitable at the moment for small businesses to thrive and succeed?

I believe the problem is not the unsuitable environment to do business but things like our education system which fails to nurture entrepreneurs while they are in school. The opportunity cost is huge for professionals as job security might be more appealing and logical than starting a business that might not succeed. Some business owners see their ventures as a last resort because they might have struggled to find a job.

Right now Headboy Industries Inc. is  focused on selling as much DryBath to corporates and household users as they possibly can and to see Headboy Industries Inc. become a huge conglomerate in Africa.The start-up company has plans to sell different products and break into new industries challenging the generic way of doing business.