About Us
Who We Are
On the surface, we are a team of chemical converters and contract manufacturers that manufacture locally and are also geared for global trade – but we don’t let that define us.
At our core we are purpose-driven creators. We combine passion with our skills, knowledge, and experience to:
• Create Products that hydrate, and enhance, and
• Create Opportunities for people to grow and develop
Our Beliefs and Values
Being part of a growing, thriving business requires more than showing up every day, it requires beliefs and values that are deeply held and lived out.
Hydration is Vital – all our products start out life in liquid form, and most are focused on providing or retaining moisture
The best way to develop a sustainable business is to develop and empower the people in the business, especially those from historically underprivileged areas and marginalised groups
Local manufacturing plays a vital role in creating employment that uplifts underprivileged individuals and communities, but
We also need to have a global focus and look for opportunities to export South African made products wherever possible as this creates more wealth and opportunity for our people
Our Core Competencies
We offer an efficient, and cost-effective contract manufacturing solution to brand owners or on a private/white label basis, e.g. for use as house brands.
We have proven competence and capability in Product Development, Mixing, and Filling. Our bottling, filling, and labelling operation can handle a variety of product in categories like water and sanitisation, personal care, household/cleaning products, and automotive oils and lubricants.
Click Here for more specific information about our capabilities
Our Story
RN Liquids (originally called RN and Son), started operating in 2015. Initially, product development was handled in-house and production was outsourced to a local company.
As demand and volumes grew, it made sense to set up our own production facility. From humble beginnings with 8 staff hand-filling bottles in the rented basement of a factory in Westmead (Durban), this side of the business has grown steadily and now includes automated filling lines capable of filling sachets from 10-100ml and bottles from 50ml to 1 litre (larger bottles are filled using a semi-automated process), from our internal mixing facility or product supplied by business partners (including bulk loads).
The factory manufactures and bottles for brand and private label customers and also produces our own range of hair and body care products under the First Class Products brand name, for local and export markets (all products can be labelled in multiple languages).
From the very beginning, community upliftment and employee empowerment and development have been priorities for us. Most of our employees are working mothers from Motala Farm (Pinetown), a local disadvantaged and impoverished area. Being employed at RN Liquids has given these women a way out of poverty and the means to educate their children – a key priority for them.
Many of our employees have grown, developed, and been upskilled within the business – allowing them to be promoted into the roles of team leaders, supervisors, and quality assurance managers.
We are also a young, but highly skilled business, with most of our staff complement under 35. This gives us the advantage of longevity in business relationships (founders/key players in some of our more established competitors are approaching retirement age, and often there is no clear succession plan in place.)
About Our Founder
Ryan Naicker, RN Liquids founder, owner, and CEO fell in love with sales and manufacturing when he was only 15 while working a part-time job at an optometry business.
A few years later he used his savings to start a business on the side, at the same time studying for a Bachelor of Commerce degree and keeping his part-time job.
Initially, his business supplied toilet paper to B&Bs and Boutique Hotels. While he was investigating the option of branching out into supplying hazardous waste bags to hospitals, he was introduced to successful businessman, Mike Maziya, co-founder of Verigreen (formerly Izaka Plastics), the manufacturers of the SUPA MAMA® range of eco-friendly, affordable waste disposal and everyday kitchen products.
Ryan ended up serving as an “apprentice” to Maziya for the next 6 years, after which he left and started his own manufacturing business (at Maziya’s insistence, part of the mentorship deal was that he had to leave at the age of 27 and start his own business).
Ryan started out marketing a range of affordable hair care products with a high-end look and feel under the First Class Products brand name to wholesalers for distribution to retailers targeting lower LSM consumers.
Initially the products were manufactured in a third-party facility, but within eight months, Ryan had set up a small manufacturing plant of his own in Westmead.
That business grew into the RN Liquids of today.
Ryan has plans in place to keep expanding the RN’s contract manufacturing capabilities and capacity, as well as further developing the in-house brand.
Press Articles
For more information about the RN Liquids story, read these articles:
Entrepreneur’s first class success – The Mercury, Business Section |
The Path to Prosperity – KZN Invest (page 13) |
Company Details
Official Name: K2014265197 (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd t/a RN Liquids
Company Registration Number: 2014/265197/07
VAT Number: 4150270918
BBBEE Status: Level 1 Contributor