MARCH 6TH 2021
Saturday is championed as a day when most shy away from activities or appointments, especially via the new normal of conference calls. But for the twenty-three participants who logged on for the Youth Empowerment program, tagged challenges as opportunities, the engagement was far from lack luster.
What could one expect from a thirty minute interaction? Music, Art, Networking, Career guidance? At the challenges as opportunities session, attendees experienced all of the above. The event was organized to enlighten attendees on the relationship between creativity and young entrepreneurship, as well as the re-orientation of obstacles faced in those fields.
Samantha Reindorf (the interviewer) opened the meeting room with a jazzy music playlist, setting a feeling of relaxed discussion for the interview. Two talented entrepreneurs by the name of Abdulai Saaka( popularly called Saka Remedy) as well as Louis Oteng Baah drove the conversation with their experiences and perspectives. An outstanding quality of these entrepreneurs is that they are still pursuing degrees while actively growing their businesses. A situation many would consider a “challenge.”
ABDULAI SAAKA
Abdulai Saaka is the founder of Robin Hood Garbs; a pioneer street fashion brand set to launch in June 2o21. He is also a poet, currently studying public relations at Ghana Institute of Journalism. The construction of his dialogue, attention to detail and confident tone; is a testimony to his BA in communication. Saaka’s decision to open a clothing brand stemmed from his observation that creativity in affordable street wear still had a long way to go. If it wasn’t too expensive, then it lacked an essential quality or aesthetic appeal. This presented as an opportunity for him. To paraphrase him “problems mean problems to solve.”
He affirmed that the easiest part of the journey was designing clothes. Credited to, in his words, “a crazy imagination”. His journey wasn’t without challenges though, availability of capital, structuring a good business model and finding the right partners (preferably fast paced thinkers and doers) where his greatest roadblocks. His solution to source for capital was to pitch proposals to existing organizations who were looking to invest in young entrepreneurs. In planning his business model, he conducted research on his most important stakeholder— wearers of street wear. Asking the question “What will make you buy street wear?” From the feedback he received, his business model was structured.
Mr. Saaka makes it clear that Robin Hood Garbs is focused on impact for the consumers, more than it is on income for the creators. He asserts that the greater the customer satisfaction, the better the brand reputation and revenue. One of his greatest fears is failing to meet rising demand, as well as failing to stay consistent in brand image.
LOUIS OTENG BAAH
Louis Oteng Baah is the founder of Lui Art Group; a fast growing art firm that has received recognition from well-known figures such as Don Moen and Faith Modelling Agency. Oteng is a student of graphic design at Takwa Bay Technical University.
There is a chunk of people’s personalities that become lost through the airwaves, but Mr. Oteng’s radiance, gratitude and passion continuously resonated in his voice. He discussed how much progress he had made from his days of sketching comics, as well as being inspired by fellow artists—visual artists to be specific. Persons such as Nigeria’s Boniface Chukwudum Okafor and South Africa’s John Mark Moore. Oteng’s favourite art medium is charcoal, which is popular for its effectiveness in hyper-realistic drawings. His motivation to start an art Firm stemmed from the absence of such in his environs, in contrast to the presence of other firms, such as law Firms, accounting firms, etc. He began to dream of a community where artists could collaborate and find contracts the same way musicians were scouted by record labels. Hence, Lui Art Group was commissioned.
His business model is structured to accommodate as many artists on University campuses across Ghana. The firm also exports finished artworks outside the country and it's doors are opening to artists outside of Ghana. On having a pattern to successful art, Oteng insists that there is none. “Some artists draw celebrities, which I found too common. But they are doing very well. Some are more abstract like Jonah Dry and he is doing great too!”
Like Mr. Saaka, Oteng also places impact above money. There were days when his greatest fear was losing his hands, so much so that he practiced drawing with his feet on beach sand! Of recent, self-growth has made him realize that art would always find a way to express itself. His new fear is suddenly losing the ability to conceptualize and express that art. Sighting his talent as god given, he is confident that it would never be taken away.
A very important question for the duo was raised by the audience, it was: “Did you forgo your education to pursue your businesses?” The answer from both was “No”, evidenced by their pursuit of degrees. They advised that though they didn’t quit their degrees, it might be the best option for others who have weighed their options and require more concentration on their business.
As music ushered in the event, so did it bring it to a close. One very inspired attendee requested that Mr. Saaka perform a live rendition to one of his best spoken word records: “Enigma."
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