Cleo Anastasia Johnson’s Journey to Becoming a Hospitality and Marketing Maven

Profile | By Joseph Olaoluwa Cleo Anastasia Johnson’s Journey to Becoming a

Hospitality and Marketing Maven

Cleo Anastasia Johnson is best known for her drive, her successful track record and commitment to mental health. But these are not enough attributes to define this hospitality and marketing maven. Nevertheless, they give you a glimpse into the foundation of everything she represents.

Her journey in hospitality began shortly after she obtained a National Diploma in Hospitality Management from Cape Town Hotel School back in 2012. She took up job roles as a Receptionist and Management trainee at The One & Only Hotel, Cape Town and African Pride Melrose Arc Hotel, respectively. These roles served as the perfect springboard to launch her into the world of hospitality and marketing. Between 2012 and 2017, she worked with Marriot, Radission Blu before going on to set up Nuecleo, a consultancy firm specialising in social media and marketing strategy for hospitality & tourism businesses that lack marketing infrastructure and a presence in the digital space.

In a video interview with Renuka Methil, the Managing Editor of Forbes Africa, Cleo gave a rare insight on how she started off her own business at a Starbucks outlet in 2017, by simply talking to a stranger.

“My journey started in 2017. I think it was in January when a certain contract was not working out. About a week later was my last day at the hotel. I thought about going out to India for some six months and just take time for myself to discover what is outside corporate. I tried monetizing a blog to make money, bored with everything else.

“I had to register a company and establish a brand identity while I found myself at Starbucks. And there was this gentleman opposite me, who asked what I was doing. I was just registering as a freelancer trying to go overseas. He asked, what do you do? I explained that I did social media and marketing strategy. Then he replied he needed a social media manager.” An excited Cleo said it was her first business opportunity that had come when she decided to go solo and was really thankful for the gentleman who pushed her onto that part, leading her to cancel her India trip and opening her first digital hotel in South Africa. “It was an amazing experience,” she remarked.

Cleo, who is the recipient of several awards and recognitions, said that the best thing for South Africa’s hospitality industry was to get off the red-list and observe stricter COVID-19 protocols to save the industry. She stressed the need for travel and its importance for the hospitality industry as well.

The 29-year-old who was honoured in the Business, Entrepreneurship and tourism categories of the Mall and Guardian 200 Young South Africans in 2020 wants to revolutionise the entire travel and hospitality business.

My aim is to change the face of the hospitality and tourism industry, not only in South Africa but on the continent through commercial strategies, skills development, business intelligence and systems that take into consideration the 4th Industrial Revolution.

Cleo has always stressed the importance of having good mental health to confront life challenges head-on as well as having good social currency in relationships.

“Your health is your greatest asset and that includes your mental health. Learn to rest and not feel guilty for it. If you’re in it for the long haul, pausing is necessary,” further adding, “learn to be introspective, learn to read people and learn how to take criticism. These three things are vital for your growth.” Cleo has admitted to suffering from imposter syndrome. In an interview with the Baby Girl Club magazine which she posted excerpts on her Instagram account, she chronicles how she overcame the constant battle of success cum failure.

She said, “I suffer from imposter syndrome all the time. Following your dreams and aspirations is extremely personal. It is great to have role models and people you look up to, but at some point, you need to understand what success and failure look like to you.

“There is a lot of unlearning I had to do from working in a corporate environment. I stopped looking at what I thought the end goal would be and how it would look. No journey is linear, and freeing yourself from these preconceived notions gives you the freedom to explore and create.” Reacting to the honour bestowed on her by Forbes, she stressed that it was “a humbling one,” remarking that 2020 and 2021 were difficult and pivotal in her journey. In her life advocacy, she is extremely grateful and daring.

She says, “I love what I do and have a passion for it. If something is not inspiring me or challenging me enough, I switch gears or step back and take on something that does.”

Notwithstanding, she has continued to give back in cash and kind, especially for underserved girls, while believing in the power to change the world one person at a time.

She said, “One of my proudest moments was summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro for Caring 4 Girls, a sanitary pad and sex education programme that’s part of the Imbumba Foundation. Knowing that I could stretch my body and mind under some extreme circumstances reinforced my belief that I am capable of just about anything, if I want it badly enough.” She adds, “Business is not just about profits, but what you can do to lift others up.” In July, she launched DIGITAL MOYO, a collection of her travel photographs shot in Africa and illustrated. Anastasia Johnson is awarded the honor of one of Africa’s top 50 influential CEOs.

Zimbabwean Serial Entrepreneur, Shakemore Timburwa is on a mission to connect Africa with Clean Energy

In a world where many young people are increasingly engaging in questionable ventures in a desperate bid to get rich quick, Timburwa’s drive for success is wired differently, to cater for development on the African continent. The most recent honour for the Zimbabwean serial entrepreneur is being featured on Forbes’ 30 under 30 list for 2021.

With interests in diverse industry sectors - alternative energy, mining, real estate and manufacturing, the youthful business mogul seeks to simply be an inspiration for young entrepreneurs like himself, as showcased in a video by Forbes Africa.

“My story should act as a motivation for other young people who want to venture into business. And my story is the same, that they can make it and we have Forbes Africa to support us all the way. So I think that is how I will support other people,” he said. He added, “Being on this list is going to create a wide range of connections which, if I am wise enough, I can turn into commerce and they will help me grow and push harder in attaining the goals and milestones that I have also set for myself.”

Our goal is to connect the whole of Africa, Cape to Cairo dream, with clean energy.

As an entrepreneur, he wears many hats. He generally describes himself as the founder of Energy Plus, a leading integrated energy company that specialises in Liquefied Petroleum Gas installations and bulk distribution and solar electric design and installation across Africa, but mainly the Sadc region. He is also into construction, as co-founder of PICCO Construction with long-time friend Rhinos Mautsa, as well as the owner of a gold firm, Parvaim Gold Holdings.

In all of these, his passion is towards sustainable energy and that is the major motivation behind all that he seeks to achieve on the continent.

He said, “Our goal is to connect the whole of Africa, Cape to Cairo dream, with clean energy. I will say, the drive and inspiration came from where I had grown up. I grew up in a place called Dangamvura in Zimbabwe. Entire community lived on fossil fuels as their source of energy and lighting. The whole idea was very disturbing to me. I felt there needed to be a change, something that can be done to preserve the environment because there were high levels of energy poverty. The load shedding was just too high and electricity was always out. People would go and cut down trees. It was just catastrophic. Henceforth, I decided to find a way to solve it.”

Childhood

with strong influences from Google founders Larry Page and Sergy Brin, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs, Elon Musk, Strive Masiyiwa, Johann Rupert, amongst others.

The motivation for his gold firm is to create value within a reasonable timeframe, one that will stand the test of time.

“Parvaim Gold is a full-fledged mining company vested in mining and financing. It works to link foreign mining assets and investors to different local mining interests,,” he said.

“Through the company, we invest in development and production stage mining companies, as well as products and services that serve the mining sector, ‘’ he explained. This string of businesses is in addition to Infinity Farm Fresh, a firm designed to make customers get high-quality fruits and vegetables produced and distributed within the highest health standards, affordable for the average man.

These amazing feats have brought him many accolades like the Global Chamber of Business Leaders (GCBL) Young Business Leaders Programme which he was recently inducted into and the Institute of Corporate Directors of Zimbabwe (ICDZ)’s 40 Most Influential Under 40.

Timburwa’s entrepreneurial drive did not just start out of the blues. Exeleon Magazine reports that it began during his college days. His dream of bagging a Diploma in Diesel Plant Fitting Mechanics from Mutare Poly Technical College was cut short by an energy crisis in his hometown, Dangamvura.

These occurrences served as the base for his enthusiasm in energy, its impact on Zimbabwe and Africa on a larger scale. His research on LPG and solar panels led him on this journey

His mentor, Dr James Makamba had this to say about him:

“28-year-old businessman and Chief Executive Officer of Parvaim Gold Holdings, Shacky Timburwa is an example of a young trailblazer who made a name for himself in 2020. He has been recognised by various prestigious institutions, including Forbes and the Pan-African Youth Foundation. I hope 2021 will have better revelations for all of us.” Shakemore believes his success, dreams and aspirations are priceless and cannot be placed a price tag on.

This makes him a strong canvasser of Africa’s development. His recent words on ZBCTV’s Economic Forum programme is enough pointer to this.

In his words, “As long as Africa does not recognise how powerful it is as a continent (not as a country), we are never going to be a part of the global story. The change that Africa needs should predominantly come within Africa. There is no one who loves Africa more than Africans. If anyone is not in Africa and they want to do something for Africa, you must know that they are exploiting something that you may not be able to see now.”