the pride of Africa's women entrepreneurs
Agata Karolina, founder of House of Gozdawa (South Africa)
LoA met with talented South African perfumier, Agata Karolina, to talk about what it takes to harness Africa's most evocative natural ingredients and create a truly exquisite and unique range of pure fragrances that each tell a story.
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Rehmah Kasule, author, entrepreneur and women's empowerment activist
Listen to LoA’s interview with Rehmah Kasule as she speaks about her new book, From Gomba to the White House: The journey of an African Woman Entrepreneur. She shares some of the highlights of her entepreneurial journey and gives some great advice to other women entrepreneurs who are hoping to follow in her footsteps on the continent.
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Helen Andrews, founder of White Rabbit Days (South Africa)
LoA had the opportunity to chat with Helen Andrews, the creative founder of White Rabbit Days, at the Sanlam Handmade Contemporary Fair in October. Her unique jewellery design company uses laser cutting techniques to craft astonishingly beautiful pieces from a range of materials from leather to brass.
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Hanneke Schutte & Karen Carr, co-founders of Benji and Moon
LoA recently had the pleasure of meeting co-founders Hanneke Schutte and Karen Carr of Benji and Moon, a wonderful South African startup creating beautiful handcrafted products for your beloved cats and dogs. At the recent Sanlam Handmade Contemporary Fair in Johannesburg, LoA chatted to Karen who shared the exciting journey the pair are currently on in launching their great company and products. Listen to our interview….
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Bushera Bashir, founder of Trebene
LoA chatted to Bushera Bashir the creative founder of luxury accessory brand, Trebene, who are exciting the fashion world with their beautiful cashmere scarves, at the recent Sanlam Handmade Contemporary Fair in Johannesburg. She shared the exciting journey the brand is currently taking as she launches her 2016 collection globally to much acclaim.
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Leigh Lisk and Lucy Beard, founders of Hope on Hopkins (South Africa)
LoA chatted to Lucy Beard, who is the co-founder of Hope on Hopkins together with her husband Leigh Lisk, during a busy day at their exhibition stand at the recent Sanlam Handmade Contemporary Fair in Johannesburg. She shared the roller-coaster ride that is the startup experience, and how becoming an entrepreneur has its challenges, but is well worth the journey from a personal, life-enhancing perspective.
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Robyn Britz (L), co-founder of ZANA (South Africa)
LoA got to chat with Robyn Britz earlier this month at the Sanlam Handmade Contemporary Fair - she is one half of the creative mother and daughter team behind the Zana brand. Robyn shared the ups and downs of her entrepreneurial journey so far in the competitive world of homeware, accessory, fabric and furniture design, and how Zana is managing to stand out from the crowd.
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Anna Richerby, founder of Beloved Beadwork (South Africa). Image: Michael Griffin
Founded in 2009, Beloved Beadwork is a company of twelve women passionately committed to the preservation and elaboration of the beadwork tradition. LoA caught up with founder and designer Anna Richerby at the Sanlam Handmade Contemporary Fair in Johannesburg to learn about this inspiring venture. Listen to our fascinating interview.
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Chinwe Ohajuruka founder of Comprehensive Design Services at the 2015 Cartier Women's Initiative Awards Ceremony
Chinwe Ohajuruka, 52, lives in the United States and is of Nigerian heritage. Her 3 degrees in architecture and 3 accreditations in green building led to the creation of Comprehensive Design Services, a company that provides “comprehensive solutions to complex problems”, as Chinwe explains. She received her Cartier Women's Award in Paris on 15 October 2015 and in this interview she describes what it means to her personally and for her business moving forward.
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Linda Gieskes Mwamba, founder of Suki Suki Naturals. Image by Michael Griffin
Meet Linda Gieskes Mwamba the founder of Suki Suki Naturals, an Indie, Natural, and African Hair Care Brand. Linda is the first natural African hair care brand to be invited to exhibit at the Sanlam Handmade Contemporary Fair in Johannesburg. LoA caught up with her at this event in October 2015 and chatted with her about her exciting new haircare brand. Listen to our interview.
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Anna Raimondo, founder of Smith Jewellery (South Africa)
LoA had the opportunity to meet and chat with Anna Raimondo, the creative Founder of Smith Jewellery this month, on a very hot and blustery day on the rooftop of the Sanlam Handmade Contemporary Fair in Johannesburg.
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Suzana Moreira, founder of moWoza (Mozambique)
Nobesuthu Ndlovu, co-founder of Burgundy Fly (South Africa)
Lionesses of Africa had the pleasure of meeting Nobesuthu Ndlovu, the highly creative and engaging founder of South African fashion retail brand, Burgundy Fly, earlier this month in Johannesburg. She took time out of her busy schedule to share some of her aspirations for her company and her brand as it moves into an exciting new phase. Listen to our interview.
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Clare Kagimu, founder and CEO of Phoenix Design
Podcast: Business Mic with Daudi Mugabi
In this interview with Daudi Mugabi from Business Mic in Uganda, Clare shares some of the struggles she went through while building her brand as well as the lessons she’s learnt along the way.
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Achenyo Idachaba, founder of MitiMeth, Nigeria
Lionesses of Africa had the pleasure of meeting the inspirational Achenyo Idachaba at the Cartier Women's Initiative Awards Nominees Sub-Saharan Press Conference in Johannesburg this month. She took time out of her busy schedule to share some of her insights on the challenges for women entrepreneurs in Africa. Listen to our interview.
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Thato Kgatlhanye's social enterprise produces up-cyled school bags with an integrated solar light that is changing the lives of school kids in South Africa
LoA had the pleasure of meeting with Thato Kgatlhanye at the Cartier Womens Initiative Awards finalists press conference recently in South Africa and spoke to her about the challenges for women entrepreneurs on the continent.
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Chinwe Ohajuruka, founder Comprehensive Design Services, Nigeria
Podcast: Listen to LoA's interview with Chinwe Ohajuruka, founder Comprehensive Design Services, Nigeria. Recorded at the Cartier Women's Initiative Awards finalists press conference in Johannesburg on 28 July 2015.
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Listen to Melanie Hawken, LoA's founder and editor-in-chief, being interviewed by Daudi Mugabi, host of Business Mic in Kampala, Uganda. Melanie talks about the power of women entrepreneurs to help drive a new and spirited approach to economic growth and development on the African continent.
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LoA had the opportunity to interview the truly inspiring Dr. Paula Noble Fellingham on the sidelines of the Global Women’s Summit held in Johannesburg, South Africa on the 8th of August as part of Women's Month celebrations.
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Bilikiss Kola-Abiola, co-founder of WeCyclers (Nigeria)
Interview on 23 July 2015 by Melanie Hawken, founder & editor-in-chief of Lionesses of Africa
Listen to our fascinating chat with Bilikiss about ecopreneurship in Africa and whether it is possible for a new generation of women entrepreneurs to operate financially viable businesses whilst remaining true to their core social and environmental values.
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