Managing distressed business during Covid-19

July 25, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Impact Partner Content: Absa / by Hwalani Mabaso, Provincial General Manager: Distribution, Relationship Banking, Absa

The Covid-19 pandemic has left many businesses distressed, with some businesses scrambling for survival. It’s important for any business to think of business resilience during Covid-19 and post. If your business is currently in distress it’s crucial to first assess the situation and develop a practical insolvency plan and avoid any false movements which can ultimately impact the business performance.

Entrepreneur Advice from Cátia Mondlane / Stay loyal to your vision

July 24, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Cátia Mondlane, Founder, Isabella - Estética & Cosméticos (Mozambique)

Stay loyal to your vision…

“Unfortunately staying loyal to ones’ vision regardless of the tough times is a quality held by few and it is already time for people to understand that there is no such thing as an easy business”

Cátia Mondlane, Founder, Isabella - Estética & Cosméticos (Mozambique)

Quote of the Day by Meg Faure

July 23, 2020 Melanie Hawken

“Being an entrepreneur is one of the most powerful ways to create jobs and empower people in Africa, and I think it lies with women to be a very key part of that journey.”

Meg Faure, Co-Founder, Play Sense (South Africa)

Entrepreneur Advice from Linda Khumbanyiwa / Don’t be afraid to ask for advice

July 23, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Linda Khumbanyiwa, Founder, Lynne Kayenne Studio (Malawi)

Don’t be afraid to ask for advice…

“Start where you are and start with what you have. Also do not be afraid to ask for advice because every successful business was a start-up at one point and it's only by sharing our knowledge and stories that we can flourish.”

Linda Khumbanyiwa, Founder, Lynne Kayenne Studio (Malawi)

Quote of the Day by Shaden Abushaera

July 20, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Shaden Abushaera, founder of HeraCloset Online (Algeria)

“Being an entrepreneur is really hard, yet learning new things is part of what's so fun and exciting about being an entrepreneur.”

Shaden Abushaera, Founder, HeraCloset Online (Algeria)

Entrepreneur Advice from Mariana Agness Francisco Eria / Invest in your skills development

July 20, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Mariana Agness Francisco Eria, founder, The House of Agness (Mozambique)

Invest in your skills development...

“Be curious and invest in your own skills development and that of your team. Your brand is only as good as the people behind it.”

Mariana Agness Francisco Eria, founder, The House of Agness (Mozambique)

The Loneliness…and the Bravery

July 19, 2020 Melanie Hawken

From the Lionesses of Africa Operations Dept

“You're always one decision away from a totally different life”…

There is a book by Alan Sillitoe called: “The loneliness of a long distance runner” that was then made into a film. It’s about a boy who had made wrong decisions (who hasn’t somewhere in their lives!) and was then sent to a youth detention centre / school in the UK, one of many so called ‘Borstals’. While there he found a passion in long distance running and single-mindedly pursued this becoming very good indeed. The problem was that the people in charge wanted him to bend to their will and run just so that they could brag and boast about beating the local private school in a big race that was due. They wanted to control his power to further their agenda. They were determined to use this boy’s skills and bend his will for their own glory. This became not about him, but all about them.

Thabisa Mjo, a creative entrepreneur telling stories through design

July 19, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Thabisa Mjo, founder of Mash. T Design Studio (South Africa)

Lioness Weekender Cover Story

Mash. T Design Studio, creating a contemporary craft-driven aesthetic for Africa

Thabisa Mjo is the founder and owner of Mash. T Design Studio in South Africa, a furniture and design studio with the main focus and philosophy to tell uniquely South African stories using the medium of design.

Josie Van Aswegen, a South African bespoke floral design entrepreneur taking creativity to the next level

July 18, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Josie Van Aswegen, owner of Fabulous Flowers (Cape Town, South Africa)

Impact Partner Content: Absa / Startup Story

Every business has a heart – a core to its operations. The soul and drum beat to the golden thread that runs throughout the works. Fabulous Flowers would not be where it is today without the owner - Josie Van Aswegen. We had the privilege of catching up over the past week. And what a week! Her beautiful new studio in Toffie Lane, Claremont, South Africa, is a pleasure to visit and the creativity happening there is infectious.

Neo Mkwebane Chatyoka, an entrepreneur introducing the world to natural and organic skincare from Africa

July 17, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Neo Mkwebane Chatyoka, founder of Uhuru Botanicals (United Kingdom / South Africa)

Startup Story

More and more consumers are becoming conscious of the products they put onto their skins, and are demanding more natural and organic products that are kinder to both skin and the environment. Uhuru Botanicals, founded by entrepreneur Neo Chatyoka, is a brand that celebrates Africa’s natural raw ingredients and turns them into skincare products that are both ethical and sustainable.

Lioness Launch / New online platform pop.law aims to democratize the law for everyday people across South Africa.

July 17, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Claire Keet Pollock (L) and Sinal Govender (R) co-founders of pop.law (South Africa)

Lioness Launch

Accessing affordable legal advice and information in South Africa is a challenge for most people. But two women entrepreneurs are about to change that with the launch of their new online platform pop.law which will be a portal to a range of affordable legal products and services. Personal experiences and inside observations left co-founders Claire Keet Pollock and Sinal Govender disappointed with South Africa's legal system - enough to drive them both to do something about it independently. When they met, Claire was designing a web app to help people navigate the legal aspects of death; Sinal was running a consultancy focused on cost-effective legal advice. They realized that they were trying to solve the same problem - access to the law - and so they launched pop.law.

Anatomy of building a business that works for you by Naomi Alabi

July 16, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Book Review

If you want to stop over thinking and start your business but are experiencing analysis paralysis because you are overwhelmed with information, then author and entrepreneur Naomi Alabi has the answers. Why? Because she has personally been there. In her new book, Anatomy Of Building A Business That Works For You, she says that our world was built by people who dared to dream bigger. People who took their ideas, were patient through a number of small tasks which ultimately grew into the big businesses that we all love to celebrate.

Protecting your Intellectual Property as an entrepreneur

July 16, 2020 Melanie Hawken

by Seno Namwandi

Intellectual Property (IP) is widely spoken of but not always well understood. The IP ecosystem is complex, broad and has to balance varying interests from creators to financiers to consumers. It is relevant to the songwriter, medical technician, architect, software coder, business owner etc. IP is loosely defined as a legal right granted to a property that arises as a result of intellectual activity or creative input. It is inherently a legal right granted by a government body to exclude unauthorized third party use. Enforcement varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction which can be complicated. However, through the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), there are a set of uniform legislations and regulations to govern IP.

Recruiting in Femicide South Africa

July 16, 2020 Melanie Hawken

by Kulani Shiluvane, Founder and Chief Consultant, Shiluvah

One of the services that we offer at Shiluvah is recruiting the best talent for our clients, a majority of which are SMMEs. SMMEs that do not have the budget for offices in high rise buildings in well known locations; SMMEs that are still trying to make a name from themselves and grow into the well known organisations people have come to know and trust, and whose authenticity is unquestionable. And while such facts shouldn’t be a problem when it comes to sourcing talent – in Femicide South Africa, it is and here’s why.

Rest is more than just sleep

July 16, 2020 Melanie Hawken

by Dr Ashika Pillay

There’s no doubt that many of our minds are on hyper-alert. The stress response of feeling vigilant, worrying , planning, working, and dealing with immediate day-to-day chores can be overwhelming. At this time of lockdown when we supposedly have “more time”, we can actually feel burnt out, because so much is changing, uncertainty pervades and the balance of the “known” is thrown off. Expectations of “being more productive”, having more family time, exercise etc can actually deplete us by making us feel like we are not “making the most” of the time that we have? A spectrum of emotions like guilt, shame, anger, anxiety, frustration are part of what we experience through the day.

Quote of the Day by Lombuso Mthethwa

July 16, 2020 Melanie Hawken

“Know your customer and provide a product or service that will first make their lives better, then make your money, because if you take care of your customer and their needs, you will never run out of customers.”

Lombuso Mthethwa, founder, Mom’s Club Eswatini (Eswatini)

Entrepreneur Advice from Ijeoma Ndekwu / Be consistent

July 16, 2020 Melanie Hawken

Ijeoma Ndekwu, Founder, Redrick PR (Nigeria)

Be consistent…

“Start with what you can adequately manage to ensure the optimum delivery in client or consumer experience; and be consistent.”

Ijeoma Ndekwu, Founder, Redrick PR (Nigeria)

Bringing the human into our digital meetings

July 15, 2020 Melanie Hawken

by Paula Quinsee

Digital meetings are very different to meeting in person, we miss the real essence of human connection and can miss many of the subtle cues we would have potentially picked up when being in front of someone such as body language, facial expressions and the energy/vibe of the person.

Women Working Better: 3 things you can do right now to ease the overwhelm on yourself and your team

July 15, 2020 Melanie Hawken

by Deborah Hartung, founder of Pivot PeopleTech

As if it wasn’t already challenging enough to manage a business and lead a team of people every day, we suddenly all find ourselves facing the global Covid-19 pandemic. Along with eerily quiet city streets and deserted tourist attractions, we have collectively found ourselves at home, trying desperately to maintain a semblance of normalcy while our living rooms have been turned into offices, gyms, classrooms, playgrounds and movie theaters.

Anxiety = Uncertainty x Powerlessness

July 15, 2020 Melanie Hawken

by Lori Milner

This equation comes from Chip Conley’s insightful book ‘Emotional Equations’. Chip believes that the product of what you don’t know (uncertainty) and what you can’t control (powerlessness) creates the emotional condition of anxiety, which is greater than the sum of its parts.