A MEANINGFUL WORLD FOR ENTERPRISING CAROLINE

Restless accountant finds solace in a dream business that  has made her to go places 

By George Gichuki

She is  audacious  as they come.  Energetic,  articulate and focused.  Able to dash  when  there is  sufficient  space and to duck  when the odds are not on her side.  She wonders  why  women  are asked  how they balance between  their  jobs  and  families  by  journalists while men are spared.  Lo! She focuses fully  on the role at hand  and balancing  according  to her is a misnomer.  It  is neither here nor  there.  Her creativity is at  its peak  during  the night and she therefore sleeps  late.

She won’t hesitate to shoot an email  to a member of her  staff  at 2.00 am (an ungodly hour for most of us) should a hot business idea cross her  mind. Yet she is calm and  collected.  A warm   person  that many  would yearn to engage  in an intellectual conversation.  That is Caroline Ng’ang’a for you.  The founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Crafts with Meaning – a social enterprise dealing  with home décor, bags, corporate merchandise and lifestyle accessories – a product array inspired  by the vibrant African  heritage. Her unique traits drove her to  the world  of  entrepreneurship – where those who are able to follow the untrodden paths excel beyond measure.

After graduating with a bachelor of  science  degree in statistics from the University of Nairobi (UoN),  Caroline trained  and qualified as a certified  public accountant of Kenya ( CPA-K).  Though very good in numbers,  her heart was elsewhere. “I wasn’t really enthusiastic about pursuing a career  in accounts, I wanted to do a different thing, but I wasn’t exactly  sure  what it was,  possibly  politics  would  suit me,” she recalls.  After working  for five years as an accountant, she called it quits. She ventured a  bit into  politics but still she was not satisfied.  She continued searching  for her  dream career.

Lady  luck  would  smile on  her  with  time.  While serving  as a board member  of  the Tourism Fund, a state corporation, Caroline often  interacted with women  weaving  baskets and other artistic merchandise with an African theme  as  she  toured   various parts of the country. This inspired her to start an enterprise that would help them  to  add  value  and market their   products  locally and abroad at good prices.  That was in 2018. Initially, this was a  side  hustle as it is typical  of many Kenyans.  In  2021, the  enterprise took off.  It is now her full time job.  Her search for a fulfilling career is no more.  She  would then  graduate with an MBA from USIU, as she prepared to become well-grounded  in  the world  of  business.

Spot on

A keen  observer, Caroline  noticed  that  the women artisans  she was interacting  with  though highly talented, were making goods  that  would fetch  very  low prices in the market.  “Most customers bought these goods because they  had  pity on the artisans who were  struggling  to make ends  meet,” she says.  “From my tours in foreign countries, I came across handmade artisan  products  [similar to the ones  the women  were   making] which were fetching high prices because  of  their  unique designs, and I realized the potential  of this business was very  high,” she adds.  

Armed with this information, Caroline reached out to the  artisans in  Mombasa, Kilifi and Makueni counties  whom she had already established  a relationship with. This move  gave birth to  Crafts with Meaning in 2018. “We started by making home décor which we exported  to America,” she says.  Caroline would develop the designs  of  the  products  that she wanted the women to make. Once ready,  she would  add value to them,  before embarking on the export  process.

Caroline was  inspired  to venture into this business  by her desire  to transform  the lives  of  the   women artisans. “I realized that with a little push here and there, a little support in terms of design work, these  women  would  have a sustainable  income,”  she says.  Before her  intervention, these   artisans  had limited  market  access  and  the design  of  their  products  was not  appealing.

A new page

The Covid-19  pandemic  disrupted  many  businesses across the world.  Various  governments  imposed  lockdowns  on their  economies  in a bid  to  contain  the spread of  the deadly virus. This led to adverse effects on their  economic  growth  and  the lifestyles  of  their citizens.  Faced with imminent  closure since it was entirely serving the export market, Crafts with Meaning  navigated  the delicate situation by producing  masks  for the domestic market. Every cloud , as a popular adage goes,  has a silver lining. That is how the enterprise made an entry into the domestic market in 2020.

With time, it diversified  its product offering to include:  artisan products, home décor, corporate merchandise as well as belts, aprons and  pouches among  other accessories.  That was a game-changer since currently, the enterprise  generates ninety per cent of its revenue from the domestic market.  It has partnered with various groups of artisans from Turkana, Makueni  and   Mombasa  counties as  well as Uganda. “ We are producing merchandise for many household brands in Kenya,” Caroline affirms.

Standing  out

Being a social  enterprise, Crafts with Meaning  stands out  because of  its  impact on the communities   that it serves.  The enterprise has also embraced  practices  that are friendly to  the environment.   To  that end, some of its products are made  from  recycled  materials.  For instance, it  has partnered with  leading  corporates in the country which are engaged  in outdoor advertising to make branded school bags from recycled billboard materials.  These  corporates are donating  the bags  to  schools  in  various  parts of  the  country as part of  their corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives. By the same token,  it creates art from the textile waste in its factory at Jamhuri Showground.

Crafts with Meaning is  a Kenyan brand.  Its wide array of products  use Kenyan designs,  that bring to life  our vibrant cultural  diversity, tastes and colours.  “Most of our customers are keen on having a Kenyan theme on their designs  which we are able to offer,” she affirms.  The products  are categorized into the following  groups: home décor, bags  for everyday use by men and women, corporate merchandise  and lifestyle accessories like belt pouches and laptop holders.

Hurdles

As a growing business, Crafts  with  Meaning is currently grappling with challenges  like how  to manage  its team and  the  limited  resources  and  its  disposal, as  well  as how to  get a  bigger   share  of  the  market.  By all  means, that  is  not a walk in  the park.  As the  team  leader  then, Caroline’s   main duty   is  to  motivate  her  members.  “My job is to  keep the team cohesive and  to ensure that  everyone    understands  his  or  her  role   as well as  the  vision  of our organization,” says Caroline adding  that  this  has enhanced  the team’s  productivity.

In the process  of securing business, Caroline pitches her ideas  to prospective  customers. “Occasionally, even after a thorough  preparation, I am not able to close business with a prospect  and those  are some of my lowest moments,”  she laments.

Impact

Recently, a team from  Crafts with Meaning that was led by Caroline visited  various artisans who have partnered with the enterprise so as to assess the impact of this initiative. “ We wanted to have a first-hand  experience  on how their lives have been transformed since they started working with us,” says Caroline. To start with, artisans said that they now  have a sustainable income since their goods have a ready market. “As long as they are able to supply  the  goods demanded by  Crafts with Meaning,  they are assured of generating income,” she affirms.

With a steady income, the artisans are now  able to take their children to school  and  to   access quality healthcare by joining  the National  Hospital  Insurance Fund ( NHIF).  “Some of them said  that their husbands  and relatives are nowadays  treating  them with respect  since they are not begging  them for money,”  Caroline avers.

Indeed,  her best moment in the  business  is  when she visits the artisans  in their localities – for instance Lodwar and Makueni.  Usually, these  field   visits  take  a week  and Caroline is able to  bond  and enhance  her working  experience with the creative  and industrious   artisans.

Accolades

In 2018, Caroline was feted by the Business Daily in its Top 40 under 40 awards for her achievement as  an entrepreneur.  This  development   gave the  business  visibility and opened doors  for better prospects.   Subsequently,  she got awards from the World Bank  and  the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry.  Due to  the impact of the business on the society, it has received grants from USAID, Stanbic Foundation and Citi  Foundation.   Crafts with Meaning  has also been able  to  exhibit  its work  both locally and abroad ( mainly  in the US  and  Germany) , hence gaining  more visibility and strengthening  its  presence in the  market.  “When you are  doing a good job  in the market place and   your business  model   is  well   defined,   then  many opportunities  come knocking,”  she affirms.

In  this  day  and age  of   digitalization,  the  business  has  a  strong  online  presence  through  platforms like LinkedIn  and  Facebook,  enhancing   its  visibility  further.  In  that  regard,  it  has  come  across  many  opportunities  which  have helped  in building   its  brand.  Recently, Caroline was one  of  the   top five  women  entrepreneurs  in Kenya who were feted by Visa in the inaugural She’s Next Kenya programme.

The programme is part of Visa’s efforts to support the creation of an inclusive and equitable world where women entrepreneurs can flourish through funding, training and mentorship.  “I came across  the call  to apply for the Visa  She’s Next programme online  and  after making   my submission,  waiting  for   a couple of months,  I was selected    as one of the  top  five finalists,” she happily says.  Since Visa has a huge network  of  stakeholders,  this performance  has  generated  a lot of interest in her business  through  social  media  platforms – mainly Linkedin.  “ Going forward, I believe this accolade will  help us to get a lot of support in  our endeavour to build a solid  enterprise,” she adds.

Advice to women entrepreneurs

Caroline advises women entrepreneurs  to  develop  products   that  suit  their target market  and  to avoid  procrastinating  before launching  them. “The reason why some of us don’t make progress in business  is because we are afraid  of  getting started as we seek perfection,” she says adding   that perfection mainly  comes  after  getting feedback from the customers.  Citing her business  as an  example, she says that she started  in a small way, but with time, she has come across many opportunities in  the market place which have   made the business to grow.

Secondly, in  entrepreneurship,   just as one gets opportunities to grow, there  are  also   challenges . This requires one to be patient and innovative as she develops the necessary solutions.  One also has to understand  the performance of her business as she endeavours  to  expand  its  capacity.  “This is  the  bottom line; if you have a good business idea, get started and  experience the market  without   a lot of undue delay,” she avers.

Road ahead

In the early stages, Caroline ran the business all by herself.  But as it grew, she identified a  team of  four directors  to support her in driving strategy. “The directors are professionals who are highly experienced  in  business leadership ,”  she says adding  that their expertise  and  networks have contributed  immensely to the overall growth  of  the business. As the chief executive officer, she is  accountable  to the  board. In that regard, she presents  reports to the board  during its meetings ,  making  her focused and  productive. One of  the board members recently acquired  shares in the business.

Currently, the business is  at a stage where it is growing fast  in respect to customers , the bottom-line, employees, partners and artisans among other stakeholders. “We hope to maintain  this growth  while  improving  the quality of our products and customer experience,” Caroline says with optimism.  Beyond that, Crafts with Meaning  is keen on enhancing  its sustainability. To that end, it recently  became a signatory of the UN Global  Compact hence committing   to operate  within the values and principles of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption among  others.  “Nowadays, business is not just about growing  your bottom-line, on the contrary, you must be mindful of your employees, the environment and the community that you are operating in,” she ends.

Caroline at a glance

Diary:  Wakes  up 7.00 am and reports  to work at 9.00 am.  Her role as the CEO is business pitching,  building  relationship with clients and attending  high profile meetings;

Favourite sport: She is an avid golfer; this helps her to build networks  and to keep  fit. Her home club is Thika Sports Club;

Favourite cuisine:  Thai food ;

Marital  status:  Married with one child;

The book that she is currently reading:  The  Lean Startup by Eric Ries;

 Favourite   autography: Wangari Maathai’s   Unbowed: A Memoir;

Favourite inspirational book:  The Monk who sold his Ferrari by Robin Sharma;

Dream car: Mercedes-M Class.