the pride of Africa's women entrepreneurs
Margaret Hirsch
As women we have to balance a lot - our work, our home, our husband’s, our children, our finances. We have to be courageous and have a sense of our own self worth and not allow people to take advantage of us. How often do we actually do this, just because we want to be liked? Too often.
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Lionesses of Africa, the network that looks to support and empower women entrepreneurs from across the African continent, is preparing to mark the 2 year anniversary of its launch with an inaugural Conference on 12 October in Johannesburg, South Africa. This special event, held at an equally special venue in beautiful surroundings (The Inanda Polo Club) aims to bring together around 200 women entrepreneurs from all corners of the continent to share their business building stories, to inspire others with their success, to discuss some of the big issues and challenges facing women entrepreneurs on the continent, and to network.
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Bryony Parr, founder of Oh So Organised (South Africa)
It’s true what they say, in order to declutter your mind you also need to declutter your space. And, for all those people who find it difficult to achieve the latter, South African entrepreneur Bryony Parr has the solution, Her company, Oh So Organised, is on a mission to bring a little order in to your work and home living spaces, creating the space for you to think more clearly and live more freely.
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It is essential for every entrepreneur to keep “scanning the horizon” - seeing what is new in technology, business, and society as a whole.
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Memuna Williams, founder of Avantgarde Translations
Anyone who has ever been in the position of needing to translate information into different languages will appreciate just how critical it is to have the right specialist support. One company providing truly world-class translation and interpreting services, both globally and here in Africa is Avantgarde Translations.
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Suzanne Doyle-Ingram
Simple Success Strategies For Women Entrepreneurs, curated by publisher Suzanne Doyle-Ingram and co-authored with 11 exceptional and inspiring women in business who know what success looks like, has become an instant bestseller. Today, women are starting and growing businesses more now than ever. Their businesses are bolstering the economy, providing jobs and supporting their families. Successful women realize that they have the ability to help other women grow and prosper as well – there is more than enough opportunity for everyone.
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Messaynesh Geberesilassie, founder of Mela
Often in business, finding an idea that is unique and that will resonate with customers can be hard. But in the case of Messaynesh Geberesilassie and her business Mela, she is tapping into the traditional handcrafted tradition of her home country to create a unique business opportunity in another marketplace - and she is winning new fans along the way.
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Ever wondered why an eagle is such a unique bird when it comes to the flock of the air? An eagle was created in a very unique way which makes it one of the most used examples when it comes to entrepreneurship and leadership. An eagle has some fascinating characteristics, which when applied in our everyday lives as business women, we find ourselves soaring in high places which we never thought we would venture into.
Read more- Adenike 'Nike' Ogunlesi is the founder of Ruff 'n' Tumble a leading designer, manufacturer and retailer of designer children's clothing in Nigeria. Nike started out modestly in 1996 selling the clothes she made from the boot of her car and in bazaars. Today, Ruff 'n' Tumble is an instantly recognisable brand in Nigeria and has a reputation for being one of the top manufacturers of children's clothing throughout West Africa. Ruff 'n' Tumble successfully caters to the unique fashion sense of today’s youngsters, from new born to age 16, happily mixing indigenous lifestyle trends with an international appeal.
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Sales should always be the hot topic of discussion in your business. Whether you’re having strategy meetings with shareholders or internal staff meetings, the word sales should always certainly come up. Sales is the single most important activity within any business.
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Tabitha Karanja, founder and CEO of Keroche Breweries, Kenya
- Tabitha Karanja is founder and CEO of Keroche Breweries. She is one of Kenya's leading entrepreneurs, a remarkable trailblazer and an example of a woman made good against all the odds. Tabitha chose to venture where none before her had dared. She took on an 87-year-old business monopoly and entered an industry with a deeply entrenched male gender stereotype. Tabitha broke the mould to become Kenya’s first home-grown beer and alcoholic drink manufacturer. Today, her company's state-of-the-art factory produces 10,000 bottles of gin and ready-to-drink vodka, as well as 15,000 bottles of beer per hour.
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Devotha Ntuke Minzi, founder of K-finance Limited (Tanzania)
It takes hard work....
- Devotha Ntuke Minzi is the Chief Executive Officer and founder of K-finance Limited, a microfinance company providing financial services and business mentoring to small and medium scale entrepreneurs in Tanzania. Devotha holds a Masters in Economics from Youngstown State University, Ohio, USA, and a Post Graduate Diploma in Poverty Analysis from the International Institute of Social Studies of Erasmus University Rotterdam in The Hague, Netherlands. Before becoming an entrepreneur, Devotha worked in the policy and research department at the Central Bank of Tanzania for more than 20 years.
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Lucilla Blankenberg, founder of Off the Ground Media (South Africa)
Failure's a chance to learn....
- Lucilla Blankenberg is the founder of Off the Ground Media, a South African media company focused on television, radio, print, outdoor and media campaign management and development for brands and companies. Lucilla is experienced in directing and producing all forms of media. Her television projects have included the coming of age youth drama series, Amaza, featured on SABC 1; and a documentary project, A Country for my Daughter, which won her a Gender and Media Award for best documentary.
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Wendy Appelbaum
- Wendy Appelbaum is a leading South African business woman, entrepreneur and philanthropist. Having previously enjoyed a high flying career in the business world, Wendy now devotes much of her time to her award-winning DeMorgenzon wine estate in Stellenbosch. Wendy was a director of Liberty Investors Limited, the previously listed holding company of the Liberty Group. In an earlier life she was the Deputy Chairman of Women's Investment Portfolio Limited (Wiphold), the first women controlled company to list on the Johannesburg Securities Exchange with then assets in excess of R1 billion. She also was deputy chairman of the Connection Group Limited, a major listed information technology and retailing company.
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Women in Tech Founder and CEO of EDEL Technology Consulting, Ethel Cofie, has announced the first and largest ever global women in technology week to be held both physically and virtually in over 40 countries.
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I encourage beginning entrepreneurs to rather tackle small, achievable projects first. This allows them to rapidly gain a full set of skills across a complete project, as well as building up contacts, credibility and confidence - rather than getting bogged down, and run down, working on an huge endless project.
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Paula Quinsee
Healthy relationships are at the heart of successful personal and workplace environments, but often those relationships need a little specialist help to thrive. Paula Quinsee: Relationship Expert has the insights, personal experience and specialist expertise to provide that help for those that need it.
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Ever wondered how all these big businesses started and how they came to be what they are today? The likes of Econet Wireless, Delta Corporation and British American Tobacco in Zimbabwe; Sasol, Standard Bank and MTN. I believe each of these companies has a story to tell, and from those stories we learn a lot about running a sustainable business. To some people business is all about making money, to some it’s all about fulfilling a calling, to some it is all about providing solutions to the current problems, be it social or economic ones.
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Lucilla Blankenberg, founder of Off the Ground Media (South Africa)
Many small companies recognise that they need media and marketing support, but do not always have the time or money to develop these plans or produce the media to support their businesses. For entrepreneur Lucilla Blankenberg and her company Off the Ground Media, she is not only providing a great solution, but creating a company that makes a difference to the lives of others at the same time through those efforts.
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Susan Granger, founder of Nubian Queen on 101 (South Africa)
Nubian Queen on 101 is a disruptive new name on the leather accessory scene, creating exclusive, world-class, contemporary products that are both investments yet will not break the bank.
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