the pride of Africa's women entrepreneurs
by Zainab Ashadu, Founder and Creative Director of Zashadu (Nigeria)
I dislike fads, for their transience and the sheep-like behaviour it induces in people. Furthermore, my ego is involved in this dislike, for no matter how I love and have loved a thing, should it become a trend, I drop it with immediacy and harbour an almost hatred for the trend. It is for this reason that I failed to identify with the term Entrepreneur.
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AAKS in Ghana and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees joined forces for a home décor project titled ‘Weaving for Change’. The collaboration to produce a range of beautifully handcrafted lamps and light fittings reflects the preservation of a time honoured Malian weaving technique of the Tuareg community from Northern Mali, who are living as refugees in Burkina Faso. Behind every handcrafted lamp you will find a cultural identity of the Tuareg.
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Iris Munguambe, founder of Mariée Boutique Lda (Mozambique)
Mariée Boutique Lda is a specialist event and wedding planning company, founded by passionate entrepreneur Iris Munguambe in Mozambique. It is rapidly building a reputation for creating beautiful events for its clients, all with that personal touch and a great attention to detail. This is a company inspired each day to make clients’ special days truly memorable.
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by Eldari Visser, Managing Director, Picketfence.Life
Daily we get bombarded with information on almost everything the human mind can think of. One central and very real aspect of our existence is that we all need money in any way possible to exist. Without the power to buy any goods and food, let alone shelters, we have to resort to caveman tricks… and who wants to do that in this day and age of going forward faster than ever?
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by Lori Milner, author, entrepreneur, thought leader and founder of Beyond the Dress
“Busy is a decision.” Is a well-known quote by renowned graphic designer and author, Debbie Millaman. Here’s why: Of the many, many excuses people use to rationalise why they can’t do something, the excuse “I am too busy” is not only the most inauthentic, it is also the laziest.
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Dana Mroueh, founder of MonChoco (Côte d’Ivoire)
Côte d’Ivoire is renowned for the quality of its cocoa beans, but up until now, the world has not had the opportunity to widely celebrate those beans in the finest of chocolate forms. But that is rapidly changing as Ivorian artisan chocolatier Dana Mroueh and her company, MonChoco, are producing a very special raw chocolate brand and range of products that is exciting taste buds in the country.
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Oluwafemi Oyedipe, founder of LoshesChocolate (Nigeria)
Across Africa, more and more women entrepreneurs are becoming aware of the need to add value locally when it comes to making world class chocolate using Africa’s abundent cocoa resources. One entrepreneur in Nigeria who is part of this vanguard of African women chocolatiers, Oluwafemi Oyedipe, founder of LoshesChocolate, is doing just that with her bean-to-bar philosophy of chocolate making.
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Every month at Lionesses of Africa, we showcase a particular industry sector where Africa’s women entrepreneurs are making a real impact, through their businesses, their innovation, their products, services and craftsmanship, and their passion for what they do. This month (July), we are turning our attention to the women who are changing the face of the food and drink industry in Africa, and creating new products, building new brands, and launching exciting food/drinks retail concepts in the process.
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Dorcas Muthoni, founder of Open World Ltd (Kenya)
This week saw Kenyan tech pioneer, Dorcas Muthoni, founder of Open World and creator of Open Business, sharing her thoughts on doing business in Kenya and the general lack of women in the tech sector in Africa as a whole, during a fascinating podcast interview with the Financial Times. Dorcas talked about the exciting new business opportunities in Silicon Savannah and also about how to avoid corruption in a country which has its challenges in the way that business has traditionally been done.
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Milena de Lurdes Valoi, founder of Anellim (Mozambique)
Special occasions deserve special treats, especially personalised cakes and sweet treats, and that’s where one Mozambican woman entrepreneur comes to the rescue. Milena de Lurdes Valoi, founder of specialist catering company Anellim, creates beautiful, personalised cakes and confectionary for clients who want to celebrate.
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by Deborah Hartung, founder of Pivot PeopleTech
Take some advice from those clichés you know are true! --- We’ve all heard the sayings and tend to make fun of the instructions like, ‘put the oxygen mask on yourself before attempting to help other passengers’ or, my personal favourite, ‘you can’t pour from an empty cup’. We can make fun of these and other clichés about rest, but they are true and we all need to pay a little more attention to finding that balance between work and life – especially as women entrepreneurs – in order to avoid burnout and to be better versions of ourselves.
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Michelle Rumbelow, founder of Liviya (South Africa)
Following a successful career in clothing design and retail, Michelle Rumbelow is finally fulfilling a childhood ambition, to launch a ladies clothing brand of her own. Today, Liviya brings beautifully designed and manufactured leisurewear, lingerie and sleepwear, created for the busy woman who wants to feel and look good, 24/7.
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Kristyna Zapletal
Born to be an entrepreneur by Kristyna Zapletal is a book for mindful entrepreneurs, and it’s very definitely not your typical business or startup book. It has been written for the aspiring entrepreneur who aims to address the needs of people in their community to create a positive social impact, while maintaining control over their own physical and mental wellbeing.
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Anicha Abdul, founder of EP Management & Consultancy Services (Mozambique)
Building one business can be tough, but building several businesses at the same time takes real guts and determination, and Mozambican-based entrepreneur, Anicha Abdul the founder of EP Management & Consultancy Services, has both of these qualities in great quantities. It’s why she has built a business to be reckoned with.
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Margaret Hirsch, co-founder of Hirsch’s Homestores (South Africa)
Margaret Hirsch, co-founder of Hirsch’s Homestores (South Africa)
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by Eldari Visser, Managing Director, Picketfence.Life
In recent weeks I had to experience very sad moments with people close to me. Beautiful lions were killed for traditional medicine and a very young girl passed away after a fatal accident. Life happens to all of us and the deep hurt cuts more than a cliff’s sharp edge.
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by Brigette Mashile, founder of Roka Roko
The other week I spent an entire day sorting out traffic tickets while I was meant to be working in the business, making clothes. I did not expect this, I just thought it was a quick thing and would be sorted literally quick, quick! I mean, my car licence disc is expired, you go to have it renewed, you pay and leave. In my head it should be around or less than R300 each car. Ok cool, lets go.
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by Sylvia Walker, author of SmartWoman
Don’t be fooled into thinking that just because you are bestowed with brains, you will make great investment decisions. In fact, it could be quite the opposite - many a clever person has made some really bad decisions over time.
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by Karen Wessels, co-founder of VA Connect and co-founder of SnappSales
Recently I had the privilege of speaking to a roomful of successful businesswomen about the importance of sales. These business owners required ideas on how to build sales confidence and also practical tools to implement in their business to assist with scaling and growing their enterprises.
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Suzie Wokabi, founder of SuzieBeauty (Kenya)
SuzieBeauty officially launched the first Kenyan line of cosmetics products back in 2012 – developed by an industry professional, for the everyday African woman. This month saw the leading brand announcing it has expanded it’s range to include skin care.
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