A family business headed by the Katlehong-born businessman Lebohang Khitsane, the company has crafted awe-inspiring memorial tombstones for South Africa’s who is who – from politicians to soccer stars and some of the country’s most loved celebrities. Among them is the late SA actor Joe Mafela, musicians Mandoza, Robbie Malinga and the late cabinet minister Collins Chabane, as well as designing life-size busts to honour living global icons such as American fashion designer, Dapper Dan.
The company’s strong reputation in the tombstone market has made them the go-to brand for bespoke, high quality tombstones, and it was only benefiting that the company would be commissioned to design the headstone of the recently departed struggle stalwart Andrew Mlangeni.
“There is a story behind every stone we create,” Bataung Tombstone Memorial (BTM) CEO, Mr Khitsane says as he explains the inspiration behind Mlangeni’s stone. “With this particular stone the brief was simple; to unite and make the two become one.”
He further explains: “Mme June Mlangeni, his wife passed on in 2001 and her stone was erected then. The idea now was to incorporate her stone with that of his husband’s, Mr. Mlangeni to create one simple big headstone reuniting once again the two souls together. If you look closely into the engraved picture of the couple, you can’t help but get to understand their love and intensity of their beautiful union, their happiness and togetherness.”
With a successful two-decade journey under their belt, customer satisfaction is at the heart of BMT as a business. Likewise, meeting a client’s brief to a tee, as it was the case with the Mlangenis – is just another way the company ensures it creates enduring memories for clients’ departed loved ones.
As Mr Khitsane said, every stone has a story to tell and this one was about ‘simplicity, closeness and unity ‘ and “we gave them exactly that”.
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