EP 6 - Corporate Exit to Culinary Icon, Zanele Van Zyl Unfiltered
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Rejected by publishers, she backed herself, and sold out 300 cookbooks in a single weekend.
In this episode of SA Food Stories, Zanele Van Zyl sits down with Nicci Robertson to unpack the real story behind her rise, from IT professional to one of South Africa’s most recognisable food voices.
Zanele didn’t follow the expected path. She left corporate life as a new mom to study cooking, built a loyal audience from scratch on social media, and turned rejection into rocket fuel by betting on herself when no one else would.
What followed was not overnight success, it was consistency, courage, and a refusal to dilute her voice.
They talk about:
Reinventing traditional South African food without losing its soul
Building a business organically, without shortcuts
The realities of motherhood and entrepreneurship colliding
Why trusting your own timing beats chasing validation
This is not a story about luck. It’s about backing yourself when there’s no safety net, and playing the long game until the world catches up.
In this episode of SA Food Stories, Zanele Van Zyl sits down with Nicci Robertson to unpack the real story behind her rise, from IT professional to one of South Africa’s most recognisable food voices.
Zanele didn’t follow the expected path. She left corporate life as a new mom to study cooking, built a loyal audience from scratch on social media, and turned rejection into rocket fuel by betting on herself when no one else would.
What followed was not overnight success, it was consistency, courage, and a refusal to dilute her voice.
They talk about:
Reinventing traditional South African food without losing its soul
Building a business organically, without shortcuts
The realities of motherhood and entrepreneurship colliding
Why trusting your own timing beats chasing validation
This is not a story about luck. It’s about backing yourself when there’s no safety net, and playing the long game until the world catches up.
