We have facilitated five in-class entrepreneurship workshops over a course of two weeks. Generally, we covered business strategy, marketing, finance, accounting, and operations. We also discussed why it's important for an entrepreneur to have a clear business plan.
We quickly learned that many Ghanaian entrepreneurs understand business strategy. Conversely, modules on marketing, finance, and accounting were the most valuable to the entrepreneurs.
We are grateful to our friend Marian Wiredu of IT4Teens for her impressive ability to translate business concepts from English-Fante and her tireless support throughout our time in Takoradi.
On three additional days we travelled to the business locations of eight entrepreneurs who consistently attended the in-class workshops to gain a deeper understanding of their businesses and to provide specific advice based on our observations.
The eight entrepreneurs personify what we have observed is the large "entrepreneurial class" in Ghana generally and in Takoradi in particular. Each business had strengths and weaknesses, but most importantly, each of the eight entrepreneurs had goals for their business and the ambition to learn what they could do to reach those goals.
E. is a cassava and plantain farmer who immigrated to Ghana from Cote D'Ivoire with his three sons. We were humbled to witness first hand the hard work required to tend the cassava. From his (limited) farming experience, Chris could relate when E. explained the importance of planting cassava during the dusty dry season so that the cassava sticks could mature during the rainy season.
E. faces significant financial challenges during each growing season while he waits for his produce to reach maturity but generates income at harvest by selling a high-quality product. E. aspires to "be the best farmer in Takoradi", in part, by expanding his current acreage and diversifying his risk by planting cocoa.
J.'s family owns a newspaper, soaps, and appliances retail shop. The family, which we learned has overcome recent personal challenges, wants to grow the appliance business and, eventually, to open new locations.
K. is an impressive Ghanaian chef with a popular food station. We enjoyed a sampling of her authentic Ghanaian dishes on a few occassions and, each time, were left wanting more of her fried plantains (and Jolof rice... and beans... and chicken)! The consistent flow of customers to K.'s food station is a testament to the deliciousness and quality of her food. K. plans to open additional food stations throughout Takoradi, leveraging her popular brand, and ultimately, to open a restaurant.
V. is a dressmaker and the designer/maker of the beautiful African-print dress that Emily is holding below. When we visited, V.'s shop was buzzing with the sound of sewing machines. V. explained that she constantly has orders that she is working to fill; a testament to the impressiveness of her designs. V. intends to save enough money to purchase a machine that will enable her to complete more dresses each day.
L. manufactures and sells ointments and creams for a variety of skin ailments. Her target market is smaller, less developed communities where residents cannot afford expensive, name-brand products. Customers frequently testify to the benefit of using her products, L. explained to us. She intends to expand her business by selling products in more communities. Her goal is to open her own school where she will teach others.
A. taught himself the shoemaking trade and has been designing and creating men's and women's shoes since the early 2000s. We were impressed by the design and quality of his products, and by the fact that he could design and build a pair of shoes in only two days! A. plans to purchase a spacious shipping container to operate his business in so that he has more room to work.
M. designs and manufactures jewellery using authentic African beads. She uses high quality, authentic African beads, resisting the temptation to use low-cost imported beads, unlike many of her competitors. M. intends to begin branding her products based on what she learned about marketing in our workshops. Her goal is to hire employees to assist with production and running the business.
We increased our understanding of the challenges and opportunities that each of these entrepreneurs face by visiting them at their places of business. We are grateful to each of them for welcoming us and for sharing their stores, both business-related and personal. We are hopeful that each of them is able to successfully apply something they learned in our workshops and are looking forward to updates on their progress and ultimately, their success stories.
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