21 years ago, Samantha Skyring, CEO and founder of Oryx Desert Salt, decided to walk 120 km through the Namib Desert for seven days to the Skeleton Coast. This adventure would lead her to the creation of Oryx Desert Salt.

On her expedition, she had the remarkable experience of meeting the Oryx gazelle face-to-face. Her many encounters with these majestic and noble creatures made a deep impression on her. She learned that while Oryx have adapted to waterless wastelands and can go for an extended time without drinking water, they cannot survive more than a couple months without licking salt for the sodium chloride, minerals and trace elements vital for survival in the harsh conditions of the Kalahari Desert. Samantha also discovered that salt was being harvested in the remote, pristine Kalahari Desert from ancient rock formations 250 million years old through which underground streams flow. It was then naturally sun-dried at temperatures reaching 47°C. The idea formed to create a business promoting health-giving, unprocessed, unpolluted desert salt and it seemed entirely natural that the Oryx, with its striking colouring and markings, would become a fitting symbolic icon of Oryx Desert Salt.

As with many entrepreneurial journeys, Oryx Desert Salt has evolved from packing salt on Samantha’s dining room table to a business today which supplies both independent and chain retailers such as Woolworths, Pick ‘n’ Pay, Cape Union Mart and Checkers as well as numerous restaurants country-wide.

The business has deliberately chosen to partner with women-owned suppliers such as Ukama, a packaging business which helps women from local communities create their own micro-enterprises, thereby gaining entrepreneurial and business skills. The cotton bags are hand sewn, providing employment to a small collective of seamstresses.

Most of all, Oryx Desert Salt sees itself as part of the greatest feminine power of all: Mother Nature. ‘We want to work in harmony with Nature’ says Samantha, ‘not in opposition to it. Being local, sustainable and accessing a renewable resource will always be a key value for us.’ The company principles: REUSE, REFILL, REAL VALUE Our salt is gourmet quality, yet economically priced without costing the earth Salt is vital for life, but health-giving salt is so much more than just sodium chloride. Our salt is pure, harvested from an unpolluted source in the pristine Kalahari Desert and is unrefined, preserving all its natural essential minerals and micro-nutrients vital for optimal health.

The 100% recyclable refill boxes are a key element of our strategy to give our customers excellent value for money. The grinder heads are high-quality ceramic which means you can refill your glass grinder bottle up to 10 times and still grind coarse salt and peppercorns as efficiently as when it was brand new. Refilling the grinders and shakers is not only highly cost effective, we’re also encouraging eco-awareness and being savings-savvy. When these are refilled, they are less than a THIRD of the price of buying a new grinder.

Once the glass grinder is finally finished, it can be recycled. Refill boxes are available for the whole range of salts and pepper.

Giving back We support small local businesses, build partnerships and advocate for eco-awareness.

The success of ORYX is built on the interconnection between a number of different partners and suppliers.

We believe in:

impact sourcing (choosing to source locally where ever possible, supporting small, often women-owned businesses)

and building collaborative relationships (for example, our chefs and cooking schools are valued ambassadors).

We spread our supportive net wide to include contributing to local community upliftment and encouraging care for the ecosphere that is our earth.

Our cotton bags, aprons and shopper bags are manufactured by a women’s home industry community group which has grown from one to seven women as we have grown. Our products are packed by Ukama Packing Solutions – which is a group of social enterprises started with the aim of helping women from previously disadvantaged communities create their own micro-enterprises.

Questions

How would you describe Skyring’s approach to business and ethical practice?