Halima Patel

Halima’s initial challenge was going against the accepted cultural stereotype of ‘a woman’s place is in the home.’ Her path to independent business success was littered with a plethora of raised eyebrows. She began her entrepreneurial journey selling holiday timeshare in 2001. After almost a decade in this business, she decided that she needed another challenge and opened the first Milky Lane in Sandton City in 2008. Working within the confines of a franchise taught her invaluable lessons in managing every aspect of a business framed with the strictest checks and controls. Halima created the Haute Hayah brand of fashionable modestwear importing a curated collection of high quality/high fashion ladies clothing. As an online business, Halima realized that the HH brand would need to be showcased. Unable to find a suitable vista for displaying her collection, and having consulted with a number of similarly exclusive products, she launched her fist pop-up with 11 brands @ Sandton City in 2017. This initial event proved very successful and created a platform for ambitious, primarily female owned home-businesses. The luxe environment targeted a wellheeled, niche client base.