Opportunity and Community
This month has been quite rich in events of note. The uniting thread of all these events is that I was only able to know about the them because of my association with FLUG. Founders Lounge Uganda Limited is currently hosted by a low key Tech Hub called Startup Hub which is found in the Ntinda Area along Serumaga Rd. I only became aware of their work after attending a Hive Colab yearly meetup a few years ago. Hive Colab had managed to put together another powerful event bringing a star studded cast of panelists from some of the most important and impactful Fintech in the country. The value of this panel was emphasized by someone more familiar with these types of settings-Jonathan Ntege Lubwama who as can be expected asked some pretty tough questions to those who were speaking at the panel.
Secrets in Onboarding
Africa’s Business Heroes I learned was hosting an event and after reading about it and noting the setting…Design Quarter where I have recorded an episode of my podcast. I was immediately interested. The other fascinating thing about my interaction with this event at least the registration part was the fact that they immediately let me in to their organization as a member of Africa’s Business Heroes.
In a post written a few weeks back I endeavored to present some ideas that can help make it easier for different organizations or businesses who are looking to enter into new markets. For one particular group which has as an application, this meant making it mandatory to install the app to get access to attendance as well as merchandise. I think the strategy either planned or serendipitous was to add all those who registered to the Africa’s Business Heroes group. At least for me it worked. Instead of just allowing people to attend, they chose to add those who wished to attend into their larger group. A form of onboarding 😃.
For a theme Africa’s Business Heroes chose Creating a sustainable business: Balancing Profit and Impact. There were a whopping 200 people who registered for the event.
The theme:Profit, Impact and Sustainability
What was interesting is that this very idea was brought forth in a discussion about VC myths in Africa in a webinar called Africa Reimagined and which I share in the May issue of Intersection Magazine. In it the author/speaker demystifies the continent and the assumption made by those who are either on the continent or those who wish to engage with it. One of the challenges she presents is precisely this do you build for impact or do you build for profit.
Expert Panelists
We had three major voices in attendance and a few more who stood out at least in the sense of honesty with which they presented their causes.
Louisa Kiwana of Kunda Kids, Dr. Emma Naluyima of MST School and Martin Ssali of Smart Foods Limited.
I had two primary questions. One was about the difference between or relationship between scale and sustainability. Dr. Naluyima presented the case for scale as both vertical and horizontal. For Mr. Ssali I was curious about any direction towards Tofu in their Soya business. Martin Ssali if you do not know has been responsible for innovating around alternatives to milk products for those who are lactose intolerant, those who with age cannot quite digest milk and others with products such as soy yogurt. He also shared how a simple change in name enabled his business to skyrocket in just a few weeks.
We also saw from Dr. Naluyima how she transitioned from the acre farm which eventually led her to think about a reeducation around farming leading to the creations of her school. Many were curious how she dealt with the temptation to expand. She responded with the fact that unfettered expansion often leads to a dilution in quality.
Emotion and Storytelling
One of our hosts was the brains behind a leading space Circular Design Hub formerly hosted in 5th Street Industrial Area and she shared emotionally about how she had to let her dream go after about 8 years in operations. The mind behind a flavored tea company was also thrilled to realize in real time the value people abroad place in Ugandan products especially when branded well.
Africa’s Business Heroes for me marks an important addition in the space even if they have been active for 6 years. Small business people who want access to funding can find it though different paths as I have suggested in previous podcast episodes listen here https://podcasts.apple.com/ug/podcast/the-intersection-magazine-podcast/id1669247992?i=1000653981723
Strength, Background and Approach
Africa’s Business Heroes presents one of these paths. By taking part in competitions you not only get a chance to win some money if you succeed but you also get access to resources and training. The rigorous process you go through will be useful in all the ventures you engage in in the future. You must be deliberate in your planning though. By being sector agnostic I believe that this is a promising area for those of you who are building. Africa’s Business Heroes is a sector agnostic project created for Africa by Jack Ma of China to help give African businesses a voice and platform to build and create. In our view a sector agnostic approach allows the group to cast its net wide accommodating the varied needs and challenges of a continent and set of creators and builders whose strength is in building practical solutions.
Tempted to think this is not for Uganda? Check out our past country representatives
Here is the link that you can use to apply; https://africabusinessheroes.org/en/register
Visit the ABH website for more details on the competition and application process. If you have any questions or need support, feel free to contact us at info@africabusinessheroes.org or via WhatsApp at +250 792 575 614.
Below is a poster with everything you need to know about the process.
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