Circle of African Master Chefs by Business Elites Africa

ISSUE 104

FOODTREPRENEURS:

CIRCLE OF

AFRICAN MASTER CHEFS AFRICA'S TOP TRENDING CHEFS ON SOCIAL MEDIA WHAT'S YOUR COMPANY'S EQ? RESTAURANT 101:

A QUICK GUIDE TO BECOMING ULTIMATE RESTAURANTEUR 12 KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

B2B Networking Global Contacts Resources Market Place Leads Jobs Business Listing Business Match-Making

â&#x20AC;Ś a community of entrepreneurs and professionals for business exchange beyond boundaries www.bixex.com

EDITOR’S DESK

The Beast in

Puzzle!

the

ave you ever been stuck in a puzzle game? It is not fun! It consumes you, messes with your head, and leaves you restless. Such is a typical day in the life of an entrepreneur.

I remember playing a new Sudoku puzzle game with my son some few years back. We applied all the known techniques in an effort to solve the problem, all efforts and quest to solve the problem only but led us to an apparent impasse. We kept tweaking, rearranging and retooling; before you know it, we cracked the puzzle. Business is a puzzle. You have to believe in the genius within. When you think you got it all figured out – right strategy, well-defined target market, product market fit, and all the right staff; here comes the beast in the puzzle. In order to successfully piece a puzzle together, you need all the proper metrics and strategy. We make bold to congratulate Africa's top chefs and food bloggers featured in this edition of Business Elites Africa. These ones are constantly experimenting and tweaking their business strategy. To some, as soon as it feels like everything is set to hit the here comes another monkey wrench in the puzzle. Never give up! Key in, be focused! Staying focused with your eyes on the prize is the only way to win at last. More to this edition of Business Elites Africa, we present to you sizzling success stories of Africa's top minds in the food and beverage industry. On behalf of the management team and staff of Business Elites Africa, we are thrilled and honoured to be your African voice for everything business. Stay tuned!

ETHELBERT NWANEGBO Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Disclaimer: The information on this magazine is for information purposes only. Business Elites Africa Magazine assumes no liability or responsibility for any inaccurate, delayed or incomplete information, nor for any actions taken in reliance thereon. All information can be withdrawn or changed without notice. Whilst every care has been taken in producing the information on this magazine, this does not guarantee the accuracy of the information. Business Elites Africa is not responsible for any opinion, expressed by its authors. Materials contained on this magazine are subject to copyright and other proprietary rights. No material on this magazine can be reproduced, adapted, distributed or stored in a retrievable system or transmission without a prior written consent from Business Elites Africa Magazine. © 2019 Business Elites Africa Magazine. All rights reserved.

NIGERIA: 90 Allen Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria. Tel: +2349099430429, +2348104352513 USA: 4811 Beach Blvd Jacksonville, FL 32207 | Tel: +904-240-7044 SOUTH AFRICA: 73 Booysens Road Conner Withycombe Street Johannesburg 2091 South Africa.

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Emma Ossy Isidahomen

Victor Oluwole

Oladele Kayode Pius

Asst. Editor/Copy Writer

Creative Art Director

He is best known for writing on diverse topics including features, news, politics, sports and technology. He enjoys spending his leisure hour with family, singing away with his local church choir or watching movies. Connect with him @

He is an uber-talented copywriter and content strategist who specialises in writing on SME's, Entrepreneurship, Digital marketing, SEO and more. Connect with him @

A dexterous Art Director who possesses top-notch practical/technical experience in Visual styling, Imaging and Digital branding. Connect with him @

emma.ossy@businsselitesafrica.com

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CONTRIBUTORS

Dr. Jarik Conrad

Angela D. Mealer

Kimberly Deas

He is the author of the newly released book, “The Fragile Mind,” which explores emotional intelligence, race relations and urban violence. Jarik has more than 15 years in business leadership in various industries including ﬁnancial services and transportation. For more information, visit www.conradconsultinggroup.com.

She is a serial entrepreneur with more than 15 years of experience in the field of business development. She has served in key leadership roles and is currently the Chief Strategy Officer of a rewarding consulting firm for business leaders. She believes that excellence is never an accident but the direct result of high intention and sincere effort.

Kim is a business broker, sell/buy-a-business’ expert, consultant, certiﬁed board intermediary, speaker and author She loves to share cool and wonderful things about Jacksonville, Florida where she resides.

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Ogbonna Oguh

Olayinka Daodu

Marketing Director

Account Executive

Ogbonna Oguh is a result-oriented marketing professional with an eclectic cocktail of experience in diverse sectors. He is an accomplished marathoner, podcaster, a lover of the arts and anything creative. Connect with Ogbonna @

She is an ardent advertising pundit with a knack for marketing and PR. She loves public & motivational speaking. She is also an avid reader and astute media enthusiast. Connect with her @

Casey Emmanuel is a Marketing and Promotions strategist with a ďŹ&#x201A;air for market analysis and brand positioning. He strives to either win or learn. . Connect with him @:

ogbonna.oguh@businesselitesafrica.com

olayinka.daodu@glimpse33.com

casey.emmanuel@glimpse33.com

Damilola Igbedion

Dolapo David O.

David Hundogan

Account Executive

Social Media Manager

An Ambitious and passionate brand marketer with an avid interest in sales, entrepreneurship and customer relations with several years of experience. She is also a lover of art. Connect with her @

He is a seasoned digital media expert and strategist. He is also a Marketing InďŹ&#x201A;uencer on LinkedIn and specialises in analytics, SEO, email/content marketing, and Social Media. Connect with him @

David Hundogan is a Social Media Analyst with good years of experience in social media marketing and inďŹ&#x201A;uencing, He is also a Poet and Writer. Connect with him @

damilola.igbedion@glimpse33.com

dolapo.olarinoye@glimpse33.com

david.hundogan@glimpse33.com

Casey Emmanuel M. Account Executive

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CONTENT

BUSINESS ELITES AFRICA - ISSUE 104

IN THIS ISSUE 16

Chef Christelle Vougo-Anet

Chef Raphael

Pika Chakula

13 - What's your company's EQ? 21 - Sizzling Marketing Tips 27 - Successful Entreprenuership 30 - Popular African Dishes & their Recipes 45 - Memorable Leadership Skills 50 - Africa’s Trending Chef’s on Social Media

Chef Stone (Abiola Akanji)

Chef Kinorah Awini

Chef Alex Oke

63 65 68 70 72 74

Chef Gbobonaone Modisane

Chef Zola Nene

- Restaurant 101 - A quick guide becoming Ultimate Restauranteur - 12 Key Performance Indicators - A quick guide to business Registration in Nigeria - 7 Culinary Trends that are Altering Africa’s Eating culture - Cooking with Purpose - Opportunities in the Food Industry in Africa

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CONTENT

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Business Elites Africa in conjunction with Nigerian-American Chambers of Commerce

MASTERS OF THE INDUSTRY

EKO HOTEL LAGOS-NIGERIA 29TH NOVEMBER, 2019 4:00PM - 10:00PM

RCAERPDET S START

ST R I C T LY B Y I N V I TAT I O N

CELEBRITY CHEF

Chef Christelle Vougo-Anet Cote d'ivoire By: Victor Oluwole

I like to cook out of the box. Thanks to the fact that I have so many inďŹ&#x201A;uences from my African origins but also from living and working on two continents in addition to travelling to various places.

Chef Christelle Vougo

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CELEBRITY CHEF

With the management of three high-end restaurants and a catering service, Chef Christelle Vougo has made a name for herself as the “Celebrity Chef” of the capital city of Ivory Coast, winning several awards to her name, including Restaurant of the Year at the Abidjan Restaurant Awards, Best Service and Best African Restaurant. Her restaurants in Abidjan, including LE MONDIAL, Le SAAKAN and NORIMA have hosted several high prole personalities including Chelsea Football Club Legend, Didier Drogba. Like most entrepreneurs, Chef Christelle Vougo's story is truly inspiring, she never received a classical training, but has developed her own style and techniques and her passion has seen her being recognised amongst the world's best chefs. Her determination to succeed saw her learn the techniques of a chef, learn how to manage a team and how to run a 5-star Restaurant. In her interview with Business Elites Africa, she recounts her career journey, the principles that she believes were instrumental to her success and perseverance over the years.

How did it all start? Share your culinary journey with us I have always had a passion for cooking, however, I can say that my culinary journey started while I was in the United States for my undergraduate studies. In between completing my degree programme, I worked for food chains such as Subway, Shoney's and Glady's night. It didn't take me long upon the completion of my degree to realise that my true passion was in the kitchen. How do you describe your style of cooking? I enjoy exploring bold flavours in my cooking. Where do you draw your inspiration? From everything that I hear and see in my everyday life. I am very much aware of my surroundings and the inspiration could come from people I meet, experiences or memories I have, or trips I undertake. Is there any particular ingredient that you like to use more often? Definitely garlic! Describe how you felt when you first received payment for your services. It was an awesome feeling to know that

someone was willing to pay for my cuisine. Not only was it great in the U.S, but it felt even better when it was in my home country, in Côte d'Ivoire.

In today's struggling economy, what steps have you taken to continue to lure consumers in?

What has been your biggest mistake since setting up and what did you learn from it?

It's certainly not easy but we always try to ensure that our customers have a good value for their money.

It may have been the opening of Thaïmaya; a Thai and Mexican restaurant which we opened in 2015 and closed a year later. They are two of my favourite cuisines and a very innovative concept in Abidjan. What we learnt from this experience is that we have to offer what will ultimately attract customers.

What is your favourite cuisine to cook?

How do you deal with criticism of your cooking? Very well! I believe it's only through criticism that one can improve. I consider it as a free learning experience to get feedback from what people liked or disliked. It's the only way forward. Do you think being a great chef is a natural talent, or is it something anyone can learn? Both are needed. You may have natural abilities to be a great chef; some people were born with it. However, you deﬁnitely need to constantly learn in addition to having the drive for it.

I don't have one in particular. I like to cook out of the box if I may say so. Thanks to the fact that I have so many inﬂuences from my African origins but also from living and working on two continents in addition to travelling to various places. What advice would you give to a young culinary student? You have to live it! It has to become part of your life. You also have to be passionate otherwise, it won't work. What are your top (3) tips for running a successful restaurant? Love, Courage, and Resilience If someone gave you $100,000 to invest in your business by the end of the week or lose it, what would you do? I will invest that money in my staff and offer them the best training possible.

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CELEBRITY CHEF

I think my stance has been to never reduce the quality of my products. I will never dumb it down to make sure it ďŹ ts the status quo, I will always surpass expectations as that's what I as a brand is known for.

Chef Stone

Abiola Akanji

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CELEBRITY CHEF

By: Victor Oluwole

With over a decade of experience in the hospitality industry, Abiola Akanji aka "Chef Stone" is an award-winning celebrity chef, master planner, author, dynamic teacher, administrator, marketing whiz and manager who is as comfortable in front of a TV camera as he is in the kitchen. He is the Executive Chef and mastermind behind the popular culinary arts franchise - Red Dish Chronicles Culinary School, with branches in Lagos and Abuja. There he passes on some of his acquired culinary skills to professional chefs looking to brush up on their skills, amateur chefs looking for a career change, and enthusiastic home cooks who want to pick up a few tips from the school's various masterclasses. Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Chef Stone is a graduate of the French Culinary Institute in Broadway, NY and of London Metropolitan University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management. Enjoy his interview with Business Elites Africa.

How did it all start? Share your culinary journey with us

Describe how you felt when you ﬁrst received payment for your services.

It all started from a young age really. As cliché or inconspicuous as it may sound, watching my mother give my family the luxury of enjoying meals and snacks while also twitching and introducing us to different menus so religiously struck a chord in me. Cooking seemed more like a life skill than a job. An enjoyable life skill.

Gratitude. Pride. A sense of accomplishment.

How do you describe your style of cooking? My style of cooking is more of ﬁne dining than the contemporary cuisine. Where do you draw your inspiration? I draw my inspiration from my mother, obviously. Jamie Oliver is also an inspiration I greatly appreciate. Is there any particular ingredient that you like to use more often? I like Black pepper a lot. Also, the Chef Stone secret spice is a must have. How did you raise funds to setup your business? Short funny story to that. My father didn't think being a 'caterer' was worth spending money to ﬂy abroad to study so we cut a deal. I source for half the tuition and he will make up for the rest. A fair enough deal I thought, so I started other businesses to raise money for culinary school. Great journey it has been so far.

What do you believe are the biggest misconceptions are about being a chef and why? People feel being a chef is about making traditional and familiar dishes how people know and want but it is more about being innovative. It's about, making your regular Sunday rice look like it was ordered in a "Reservations-only” restaurant. Be extra about it. How do you deal with criticism of your cooking? I handle criticisms quite well. I'm open to differing opinions and I believe it's how we learn and grow. Do you think being a great chef is a natural talent, or is it something anyone can learn? Anybody with zeal and determination will make for a great chef. You have to be interested enough to know this will take hours and time of your life to actually get to the stage of being called a great chef. Humility also, never forget that. In today's struggling economy, what steps have you taken to continue to lure consumers in? With the dwindling economy, I think my

stance has been to never reduce the quality of my products. I will never dumb it down to make sure it ﬁts the status quo, I will always surpass expectations as that's what I as a brand is known for, so help me God. What is your favourite cuisine to cook? My Favourite cuisine to cook is the French Cuisine. Ratatouille, cordon bleu and the likes of them. What advice would you give to a young culinary student? My advice to a young culinary student will be 'Never lose focus of why you got into the profession in the ﬁrst place. Learning never ends. Always seek to improve yourself and don't get too comfortable in your niche for too long. Explore other niches of the culinary world. What are your top (3) tips for running a successful restaurant? · · ·

Never lower your standards no matter the temptations. Always keep records of sales and expenses. Look out for feedback and reviews from customers and act accordingly.

If someone gave you $100,000 to invest in your business by the end of the week or lose it, what would you do? Easy. Finish the construction of the biggest culinary school in West Africa that is currently in the works. w w w. b u s i n e s s e l i t e s a f r i c a . c o m

ARTICLE

What's Your Company's

EQ? Assessing and implementing emotional intelligence in the workplace By Dr. Jarik Conrad

ou are the vice president at a successful hotel chain. You have just arrived at the ofﬁce Monday morning faced with a difﬁcult dilemma. You need to decide what to do about Peter, the director of sales at one of your locations. Peter began his career as an associate in the hotel's customer relations department 12 years ago and worked his way up through the ranks. He is a smart, dedicated employee who often works long hours – and it shows in the company's results. The hotel is enjoying a record year and is top in sales among the chain in the state, but there is one problem. Peter has trouble controlling his emotions. He has frequent outbursts and often times talks down to people. His peers hate working with him and one of his promising direct reports has threatened to quit – again. What should you do?

If you are like many people in your position, you try to ignore the issue because Peter has had such a positive impact on the bottom line. The problem with that course of action, or inaction, is that the problem rarely goes away, and it generally gets worse. If you do not deal with this right away, you may be unable to attract top talent. You may lose several high potential employees. Customers could decide to do business with someone else. People might hold back their creativity for fear of being humiliated. There could be disputes that result in costly litigation. This is a common challenge in corporate America because individuals are routinely promoted for their technical skills with little regard for their ability to work with and through people. Such individuals describe themselves as logical and objective. They are often proud of their ability to get things done without paying too

much attention to people's feelings. Moreover, many performance evaluation systems reinforce their bad behaviour. The systems capture what gets accomplished but often fall short on evaluating how the job is done. For many business leaders dealing with this issue, once the behaviour becomes too obvious to be ignored, it comes down to an ultimatum … the troubled employee must shape up, or be terminated. Well, it does not have to be this way. There are tactics that will help prevent these problems in the ﬁrst place. Emotional intelligence (EI) is the ability to recognise and manage one's emotions, while simultaneously recognising and effectively responding to the emotions of others. This concept took the business world by storm in the mid-to-late '90s after the

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ARTICLE

b. Tell me about a time when your ability to empathise with customer or co-worker enabled you to solve a challenging problem. 2. Assess the emotional intelligence of your leaders and future leaders. Since everybody is different with a unique set of challenges, an assessment, such as the Bar-On Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQi), the Mayer-SaloveyCaruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT), or the Emotional Competence Inventory (ECI) would be ideal to pinpoint speciﬁc areas of opportunity for leaders and aspiring leaders. The EQi provides a good sense of how people assess their own EI, the MSCEIT measures ones EI abilities, and the ECI measures how others assess one's EI. 3. Ensure your performance appraisals consider how the job gets done.

release of Daniel Goleman's book on the subject, but it has been sharply criticised in some circles since its time in the sun. One reason for this backlash is claimed by some proponents that EI was the cure-all for the world's problems. While this is not a true statement, imagine a leader without it – cold, disrespectful, rigid, unforgiving, and unpredictable. Who would want to work for or live with that person? EI has also been criticised because people fell into the “either/or” trap, which questioned whether EI or IQ was the key to success. Too many people have discussed these constructs as though they are mutually exclusive. From a practical perspective, the recipe for success includes signiﬁcant amounts of both ingredients. In fact, EI better enables people to take advantage of their IQ. Imagine an individual with high levels of both—intelligent, optimistic, ﬂexible, respectful and caring. Who would not want to work for or live with a person 14

like that? Of the greatest aspects of EI is that it can be learned. Your employees who want to improve their EI skills can do so, and you can help. Here are some ways to improve emotional intelligence in your organisation: 1. Incorporate EI into your hiring processes. The ﬁrst step to implementing emotional intelligence in your organisation is to develop interview questions designed to assess self-awareness, interpersonal skills, stress management, adaptability, optimism and level of happiness. This is important because it is better and cheaper to be proactive on the front end than reactive once an individual with attitude problems is hired. These questions will also help you to set appropriate behavioural expectations for any aspiring candidate. Some examples include: a. What has been your most stressful work experience? How did you manage your stress?

Reinforce to employees, especially leaders, the importance of interacting with others effectively. Help them to understand how to maximise their contributions without minimising the contributions of others. This can be accomplished through ensuring a signiﬁcant weight is attributed to items like communication, teamwork and ﬂexibility. 4. Make emotional intelligence a cornerstone of your succession planning process. Along with the standard technical and educational requirements, document the “soft” criteria necessary for effective performance in each key position in your organisation. You can accomplish this by asking job incumbents what it takes to be effective in their jobs; the skills not included in the job descriptions. You no longer have to ignore behavioural issues in your organisation for fear of losing highly skilled employees. Infusing all levels of your organisation with emotional intelligence will dramatically increase the likelihood of having a great combination—people who do the right things, while doing things right.

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Even when it looks difďŹ cult, we still ďŹ nd a way to

make your business grow. www.zionitecg.com

CELEBRITY CHEF

“

D O N ' T TA K E T H I S C A R E E R BECAUSE IT'S COOL , DO IT BECAUSE YOU HAVE A PA S S I O N F O R I T A N D Y O U A R E WILLING TO LEARN

- Chef Raphael

Raphael King’ori Kenya

By: Emma Ossy Isidahomen

From the cradle to the cooking table Chef Raphael began cooking from a very young age having been drawn to good food and wanting to explore the art of cookery. His mum reminded him how he used to bake late at nights and everyone would wake up to the aromas coming from the kitchen. Cooking to him is all about understanding the how and what avours to mix with different ingredients cumulating to something amazing, applying simplicity and not trying too hard to over-complicate stuff or please people. He yearns to share his travel and personal knowledge and experience garnered working in various kitchens around the world and hopefully inspire others to take up cooking as a career as he did. In this brief discourse with Business Elites Africa, Chef Raphael talks about how he started, what inspires his cooking and his tips for young chefs:

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CELEBRITY CHEF

“

I DON'T HAVE A FAVOURITE DISH,

I JUST GO WITH WHATEVER DISH THAT IS TASTY AND HAS THE SIMPLICITY OF INGREDIENTS.”

How did it all start? Share your culinary journey with us: It started as a child where I was interested in cooking and baking. My dad was working in a restaurant and I became interested in good food and how it was made. After high school, I worked in our family restaurant and this gave me the exposure to restaurant operations and commercial cooking. I loved it and later I went to college to train to offer food services which gave me knowledge of professionalism as a chef. Where do you draw your inspiration? Since I share recipes on social media and teach people how to cook, my inspiration comes from responses and requests from my fans who want to improve on their cooking. Is there any particular ingredient that you like to use more often? When it comes to cooking, I would say the onion and black pepper. How did you raise funds to set up your business?

- Chef Raphael

People think it's just cooking good food which is just one part of being a professional chef. It's hard work and needs teamwork to make customers happy. It's also a business and for it to be proﬁtable one has to control the costs and reduce wastage which means one has to understand from a business side of it. What has been your biggest mistake since setting up and what did you learn from it? I don't see them as mistakes but more as learning opportunities to improve on what I do. How do you deal with criticism of your cooking?

Don't take this career because it's cool, do it coz you have a passion for it and you are willing to learn. What you learn in school are basics, aim to learn more from more experienced chefs. What are your top 3 tips for running a successful restaurant? First is to get the menu right based on whatever cuisine you want to offer. Secondly, you need to have the right personnel with the right training who will help you deliver service to your customers.

I take it positively with the simple understanding that cooking is personal and if one disagrees with me that's just their opinion

Thirdly, you must have a good system that will guide everyone on how to deliver according to customer expectations even when you as the business owner are not available.

Do you think being a great chef is a natural talent, or is it something anyone can learn?

If someone gave you $100,000 to invest in your business by the end of the week or lose it, what would you do?

If you have passion for what you are doing you will be able to learn and improve on the skills.

I would build a restaurant that would give the opportunity to young chefs to grow and learn about the profession and mentor them to have their own establishments or business.

I saved up and reinvested in payments I got for services offered.

What is the favourite cuisine you cook?

What do you believe are the biggest misconceptions about being a chef and why?

I don't have a favourite dish, I just go with whatever dish that is tasty and has the simplicity of ingredients.

What advice would you give to a young culinary student?

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CELEBRITY CHEF

Gobonaone Modisane Botswana By: Victor Oluwole

When Modisane opened Botswana's ď&#x20AC; rst culinary academy that focuses primarily on child development, the importance of healthy eating, and meal planning back in 2010, she didn't expect to spark a national movement aimed at inspiring a younger generation of chefs to follow in her footsteps. But she did. Now a committed healthyfoods chef and children's cooking instructor, Gobonaone Modisane is the founder of Young Chefs Academy, which has spawned food education programs for thousands of children, schools and several organisations over the years. She also runs a cooking show on Botswana TV called Young Chefs @ Play.

How did it all start? Share your culinary-business journey with us. I have always loved cooking and working with children. From a young age, I loved sharing the kitchen with my mother when other kids were out playing. I remember at the age of 11, baking a beautiful wedding cake for my aunt. I loved trying out new recipes and playing with food. I loved the art and creativity that comes with it. I, later realised that cooking can be a great opportunity to sharpen life-skills and stir up creativity. When I graduated in 2008, I saw a niche in the market that I turned into a business opportunity. The truth is that today we all

have such demanding schedules with work, school and sporting activities making it difďŹ cult to pass on very important life skills to our children that will also contribute immensely to their development. I honestly believe that it is every child's right to be educated about food, how to prepare it, how it is produced, why they should eat it and how it affects their bodies. I also observed that childhood obesity, one of the biggest burdens of our society worldwide is associated with a range of serious health complications and increased risk of premature illness and death later-inlife. This is all because of the lack of food education and readily available junk food. It was for these reasons and more that I decided to start a culinary school for kids.

How did you raise funds to setup your business? My business was self-funded. I used my savings and loans from friends and family. I, later on, received a youth grant offered by our government. How do you describe your style of cooking? I love hearty soul food and bread that can make one journey home or miss their mum or grandma's kitchen all made from scratch. I am a big fan of unprocessed local food and fusion salads. Healthy & hearty Yummy!

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CELEBRITY CHEF

For me what I love the most is that my job gives me an opportunity to empower children to make wise decisions when it comes to food and help them develop good eating habits.

Gobonaone Modisane How has your business fared since you the very start? I started my business—Young Chefs Academy—in 2010 and so far, we have reached out to thousands of children, and worked with many schools and organisations over the years. We have won a couple of awards to mention a few; Young Entrepreneur of the year and the Innovator of the year in 2015 at the Women In Business Excellence Awards, 50 Change Makers under 50 years in Botswana in 2016 and other Awards at the food & processing exhibitions and fairs. I have a TV show called Young Chefs@Play and I am in the processes of recording season three. The business has also faced its own challenges that are normal to every business when growth is involved. I am currently in the process of re-branding because we want to add other practical life skills that will interest more children and increase income revenue, still around food, creativity, and art. What started off as a culinary school is now being converted to a development centre called Nqoosa Development Centre where instead of focusing on cooking only, we will include gardening and creative art & crafts. We believe it is important to cover and teach children about food production so that they can be in full control of what they eat through learning how to grow organic vegetables that we will use in the kitchen.

Also, food presentation requires a level of creativity that we believe will be enhanced through our art and craft sessions.

What would your employees say are the top three reasons they love working for you?

Describe how you felt when you ﬁrst received payment for your services.

Passion, compassion and the love for teamwork.

(Laughs) Sometimes we take our talents and gifts for granted. I was amazed that people are actually willing to pay me to teach their children how to cook. There was also a sense of fulfilment and affirmation that all my hard work and sweat is finally paying off.

What was the last big achievement that was celebrated?

Tell us about your new cuisines, dishes, recipes or projects you're embarking on. I am currently working on educational recipe books for children of different ages that I believe will assist a lot of parents that wish to cook with their children at home and the school that desires to offer cooking lessons in-house. What do you love about the culinary business? It is a versatile innovative and ever-growing industry. For me what I love the most is that my job gives me an opportunity to empower children to make wise decisions when it comes to food and help them develop good eating habits. Like the popular French author, Francois De La Rochefoucauld once said “to eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art.”

I have enjoyed and celebrated a couple over the years. Having gone for The Mandela Washington Fellowship in 2016, giving a TEDx talk and making a documentary for CNN on African Voices late last year. More celebrations anticipated this year. Where do you see your business in the next ﬁve years? Nqoosa Development Centre will be franchised in the next two years and more centres will be opened in Botswana and Sothern Africa. My target is to open these centres with youths that are passionate about food and working with children as a way of empowering them to start their own businesses and reduce unemployment. If someone gave you $100,000 to invest in your business by the end of the week or lose it, what would you do? I will publish my educational children's recipe books and distribute them in all government schools across the country because I believe it is every child's right to be taught about food. I will also record my Season3 television show. w w w. b u s i n e s s e l i t e s a f r i c a . c o m

ARTICLE

SIZZLING MARKETING

TIPS

As entrepreneurs, we most often depend on our skills and knowledge in our areas of specialities to succeed in our business ventures. We tend to think little about marketing our product effectively. In fact, effective marketing strategies can determine the difference between success or failure, despite your years of experience. The following are some marketing tips or ideas that may benet your promotional efforts:

Endeavour to know who bought your product and why. Determine what motivates your customers into buying your product over your competitors' products. Find a way to include the concept of reduction in price in your marketing strategy. It is one of the dominant motivators in buying. Specify the benefits your product can provide, such as, time benefits, durability, originality, cleanness, efficiency, convenience. When preparing a brochure, make sure your message is clear and specific with a unique purpose. Growing your business demands creating a strategic marketing plan and specifying how your customers will benefit from your product in the long-run. Customer experience is the key. Whatever the customer experiences

will determine the type of loyalty, behaviour, repeat business and referral that will come from the customer. Be sure to have your competitors in mind when trying to market and position your product. Position your company in relation to the competition. Perception is the road to action. As a result, design a means for good customer perception of your products or services. If you would like to be known for unlimited product selection, top customer service, high-quality products, low prices than competitors, make it clear. Do not wait until your company grows before preparing a strategic marketing plan. A plan should be designed from the beginning to channel how your product and service will meet the long-term needs of your customers.

The strategic marketing plan should be followed by designing speciﬁc marketing objectives, how to achieve such objectives, and the appropriate details of actions to follow in both position and negative situations. When vying for customers, it is important that you do not forget those customers who make frequent purchases and contribute signiﬁcantly to your sales revenue. The present marketing outreach notion is to be communicating with them frequently and treat them like family. Continue to grab-hold of business prospects even with a “no” response. A no response for using your product or services may mean several things, and does not in the least signify that your prospect does not like your product or services. Continuous communication with the prospect may result in a change of mind if the decision to act arises.

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Welcome to

NIGERIA

Nesting International Standards with African Hospitality.

+234 1 2772700-25 | WWW.EKOHOTELS.COM

The Eko Hotel Experience...

ko Hotels & Suites is the most preferred hotel in West Africa and it's all about the right mix! Located in the heart of Victoria Island and shielded from the hustle and bustle of the Lagos metropolis, we offer our corporate clients and walk in guests a perfect blend of relaxation, activities, and African tradition delicately infused to meet the highest international standards. Overlooking the Eko Atlantic City and Ocean, it is just a 10-minute drive to the City Centre and only 45minutes away from the Airport. Our hotels are designed for your comfort and convenience. Your security is our primary concern and you'll ﬁnd our customer care second to none. Our hotels are designed for your comfort

and convenience. Your security is our primary concern and you'll ﬁnd our customer care second to none. Our hotel has taken important steps to live up to West Africa's future model in the hospitality sector. With the best conference and banqueting facilities, tastefully furnished to a 7000-seater capacity, a world-class swimming pool, 824 excellently furnished rooms spread across 4 hotels: EKO SIGNATURE, EKO SUITES, EKO HOTEL AND EKO GARDENS, mostly with a choice of city and sea views. We have 8 different restaurants and 7 different bars serving a range of international cuisines, amongst other facilities. The hotel is equipped with a state of the art health and ﬁtness centre comprising of

a gym, a tennis/basket ball court, a volley ball court, a sauna, spa, salon, and nail studio. We have an in-house medical clinic as well. We host the best themed buffet every Friday evening where we serve specialties across the globe: Africa, Asia, America, Italy, Mexico Middle East and Mongolia amongst others. Welcome to Eko Hotels & Suites, Nesting International Standards with African Hospitality.

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CELEBRITY CHEF

Kinorah Awini Ghana

By: Victor Oluwole

Ghanian cooking and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s food industry in general is getting its proper due, thanks to people like Kinorah Awini the talented and extremely successful food blogger behind Telande world. She's the reigning queen of making African cuisines look like the most gorgeous eats imaginable and is an inspirational role model for body positivity. Kinorah brings recipes of all types to her Instagram audience and her simple-to-follow video uploads on the Youtube channel has earned her many followers. Business Elites Africa interviewed the recipe creator to learn about how she turned her love of cooking into a full-time career on social media, and to get an inside look into her creative process and forthcoming projects.

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CELEBRITY CHEF

Soon after, I started getting calls from big brands wanting to collaborate or wanting food content and recipes for their products. Things began to pick up from there. Describe how you felt when you ﬁrst received payment for your services.

Being a great chef involves a lot. Asides being able to pair great meals that taste amazing, some people are naturally born with the ﬂair to cook, develop or recreate recipes from scratch.

Kinorah Awini

The first time I received my payment notification I felt powerful! I felt OMG I am really good at what I do! Out of all the people who could do what I do in the West African region, I got the platform to do this on a large scale. I felt awesome and felt the rush to do more... not just for the money but to prove that one can be successful in the culinary field and not just at white collared jobs alone. What do you believe are the biggest misconceptions are about being a chef and why? In our part of the world people think being a chef is not the coolest job but an option or an alternative for not landing 'socalled' white collared jobs.

How did it all start? Share your culinary journey with us

tweak the recipes with a little modern approach in terms of presentation, garnishes and techniques

What has been your biggest mistake since setting up and what did you learn from it?

Where do you draw your inspiration?

Coming from an extended family of different tribes and backgrounds, I used to help my mother cook a variety of meals at home every day. I was the food critic in the family, deciding on what food will pass the quality test and usually, all my family members would agree. My father is a cook by profession and he discovered my obsession with cooking at an early age, so he constantly encouraged me to follow my passion by getting me a lot of cookbooks.

I get inspirations from my travels and trying different foods and cuisines from Michelin star restaurants to street style food. I always look out for ﬂavours, cooking methods and presentation.

One of my biggest mistakes since setting up will be employing people who were not passionate about the job as I was, and the experience I had with this is realising that having the passion for what you do or your work could go a long way in making an individual or a company successful.

Is there any particular ingredient that you like to use more often?

How do you deal with criticism of your cooking?

How do you describe your style of cooking?

I love garlic I can't even lie! Garlic is beautiful, it smells good, tastes good, and simply makes everything better.

No disrespect to anyone but I feel Africans are still in the learning process of understanding what “recipe” means. When I say Africans, I don't mean everyone. There are only a hand full of people who get it. To me the most important part of cooking is how it tastes and looks - the cooking process is secondary. If I am criticised for not using seasoning cubes in cooking I just get weak and disappointed because our ancestors who created these

I describe my style of cooking as “Afrofusion.” I love love love African food! I love the authenticity of our recipes, the complex procedures and bold ﬂavours we develop in our recipes but the reason why I add the fusion to it is that I always like to

How did you raise funds to setup your business? I started off by taking pictures of my cooked meals, so in a way, I will say I started with my daily lunch budget just by snapping what i’m eating and posting.

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CELEBRITY CHEF

I describe my style of cooking as “Afro-fusion”. I love love love African food! I love the authenticity of our recipes, the complex procedures and bold flavours we develop.

amazing recipes did not use any seasoning cubes. What makes someone's recipe better than the other is that there is always a special ingredient or mind-blowing technique that makes his or her recipe stand out. I personally feel it's just difﬁcult for us to accept change especially with food. Bottom line, the more people criticise, the more I give them mind blowing recipes to process and fantasise about. Do you think being a great chef is a natural talent, or is it something anyone can learn? Everyone can cook or be a chef but not everyone can be a “great chef ”. Being a great chef involves a lot. Asides being able to pair great meals that taste amazing, some people are naturally born with the ﬂair to cook, develop or recreate recipes from scratch. You can enrol in the best culinary schools in the world but unfortunately that won't make you a great chef if you don't have the passion or get that adrenaline rush whenever you step in a kitchen. But bear in mind practice makes perfect and being a great chef requires a lot of that. In today's struggling economy, what steps have you taken to continue to lure consumers in? The advantage in the culinary business or food business is “man must eat”! We all eat at least twice daily whether budgeted or eating for pleasure, one thing we all can't 26

do without is food. What I always do is to make sure I always come up with mouthwatering meals consumers can't resist What is your favourite cuisine to cook? African cuisine without a doubt. There's a lot of diversity one can't ignore. What advice would you give to a young culinary student? Explore, experiment and dare to be different!

African culinary arts for anyone interested in training in contemporary and indigenous African cooking. We have full-time education programs for students aspiring to become professional chefs, and advanced cooking programs for chefs looking to up their skills. We also offer courses under food science centred on African food ingredients, processing, storage and nutrition. In doing so we get to nurture and encourage science students who are interested in food to create locally made products and infrastructures necessary for the development of our continent.

What are your top (3) tips for running a successful restaurant? 1- Find your niche, that will be your selling point 2- Ensure good ambience and customer friendly environment 3- Change or tweak your menu periodically so it doesn't get boring If someone gave you $100,000 to invest in your business by the end of the week or lose it, what would you do? I always say I have billion-dollar ideas for the culinary industry here in Africa, but not enough funds to facilitate it. If someone gave me a $100,000 to invest in my business I will deﬁnitely invest in my culinary school culinary school - SACAFS (Telande School Of African Culinary Art & Food Science) - a culinary arts training institute offering the complete spectrum of w w w. b u s i n e s s e l i t e s a f r i c a . c o m

YOUTREPRENEUR

SUCCESSFUL

ENTREPRENEURSHIP: GETTING OTHERS TO SEE YOUR VISION

By: Angela D. Mealer

We have all seen posts on social media or talked to someone we know and been told that not everyone will understand your dreams and that you can't share your vision with everyone so you must be willing to walk alone. This may be true as it relates to personal matters, but when it comes to having a corporate vision or following your dreams as an entrepreneur, that's a completely different ball game.

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YOUTREPRENEUR

n a recent article in Inc. Magazine, Kevin O'Leary, one of the investors from Shark Tank, purported that the primary purpose of being in business is to make money. He went on to reason that in a capitalist society, owners and entrepreneurs have a responsibility to the people who invest in their companies. They must make sure that they are doing everything that they can to create a maximum return on investments. In contrast to O'Leary's point of view, Adam Lowry, CEO of a clean manufacturer of household goods, reasoned that businesses should always have a greater purpose. They should have a cause such as charitable giving or environmental sustainability, that drives their effort which will eventually increase their profits. So which one of them is right? I say it depends on the vision of the company. Creating a vision for your company starts with a mental picture of what success will look like within a specified amount of time. It should also account for some specific goals such as profits, customers, and innovation. But that's not all. Formulating a vision statement also signals to your customer whether or not they should follow you and support your business. The vision statement for my company TempleWorks is: “We create unique, all natural products to make your body better.” From that statement, you can imagine that my target customers are people who value natural products, health, and creativity. I don't mention profits or shareholders because the primary purpose of the organisation is something greater. 28

Do I have customers who care less about the ingredients or their health? Certainly. But the majority of my marketing dollars are spent in the area where I've directed my vision. As a start-up business, your resources will be limited. This includes finances, human capital, and time. Therefore, you must be intentional about the steps that you take and where you give focus. If you are deliberate about the reason that you start your business and who it will benefit, that will give you a focal point for all other activities. The point of views that Kevin O'Leary and Adam Lowry present are both valid because the expectations of the customers and shareholders should be reasonably based on the company's vision. If for example, I began to make products for TempleWorks from harmful, synthetic material, then I would be doing a grave disservice to all parties. This is because their expectation was that the company had a greater purpose. But, if I am the CEO of Apple, and I decide to remanufacture all of the iPhones from recycled material, then that would create a problem because the shareholders would be expecting a profit first. It is important to create a clear vision for your business, communicate that vision effectively, and remain consistent and diligent while bringing it to pass. Whatever you decide is your primary purpose for doing what you do is up to you; however, if no one buys it, then your project won't succeed. Don't confuse your personal authenticity with your global purpose. Yes,

you must be willing to be who you are and walk alone if necessary but when you decide to go into business, you need a community of supporters who understand your vision and are willing to pay for what you create. The more people you reach, the more powerful your impact. Here are a few tips to help you along the way: 1)

Be authentic. You cannot cast a broad net in your messaging and expect to capture the right audience. Authenticity is knowing who you are, what you do best and know who you service. Stay true to that.

2) Pay attention to your customers. Ask for regular feedback and evaluate the results. If there is a breakdown between your vision and your end product, your customers will let you know. 3) Align your brand with your vision. Have clear messaging and choose images and verbiage that communicate your vision to the masses. Don't just say it, prove it. Your vision is bigger than you and now.

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PUZZLE

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F E AT U R E A R T I C L E

Popular African Dishes & their Recipes By: Emma Ossy Isidahomen

sides from being blessed with the rich natural resources and a people so lovable and receptive, Africa undeniably has mouth watery meals that are a wonder to the taste buds. Whether they are boiled, mashed, fried, seasoned, grilled, roasted, etc, though still not well represented in the global food space, they remain a wonder to see, feel and eat. Some of these African culinary delights are easy to prepare but others come in tasking but relishing tasty varieties. Ever wondered how to make some of these popular tasty African dishes? In case you want to try them out on your own, or you are visiting any part of the African continent anytime soon, here are some of these really great food delicacies and how to prepare them:

Abacha & Ugba Nigerian 'African Salad'

Origin: This meal originates from the Eastern Parts of Nigeria especially Enugu State who are known for special attachments to its preparation. The delicacy is made from shredded and dried cassava mixed with palm oil and other condiments. Abacha is mostly considered a light food as it is eaten between meals. Ingredients and Recipe: 6 to 8 cups of Abacha (African Salad), ugba leaves, 100ml of palm oil, Ehu 3 seeds (optional), 1 to 2 cubes of seasoning, salt and pepper for taste, half cup of crayfish, 1 teaspoon of edible powdered potash, Utazi leaves (optional), 3 to 5 garden eggs (optional), Meat/dry fish/stock fish (optional) and a bulb of onions. The cassava tubers are boiled till done then sliced with a special kind of grater. The sliced cassava is then soaked in water overnight, afterwards washed thoroughly and dried under the sun or boil for about 3 minutes, then sieve. Then slice the onions, blend the crayfish and dissolve the ground potash in half cup of water and filter to avoid unwanted solid parts. Add palm oil and stir to form a yellowish paste, then add the blended crayfish and pepper, stir again, then add the ground ehu. Also include the ugba to the mixture and stir again. Finally, add the abacha, salt and seasoning. Now serve the meal while it's still warm.

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F E AT U R E A R T I C L E

Poulet Yassa

Senegalese Lemon Chicken Origin: The Yassa Poulet as known by some, is inspired by the French and adapted by the people of Casamance region in Senegal. A full chicken or major parts can be used for the delicacy. Recipe: This Popular West African dish is done by simply marinating chicken in lemon juice, steaming the chicken till it cooks, and then simmering it in the already-boiled marinade In case you are not a fan of lemon chicken, just make sure you don't add too much to spoil your taste buds. Also add peppers and bay leaves to give some hot ﬂavoured kicks to your chicken. The Yassa Poulet meal can make for a dinner party centrepiece as it can be served side-by-side white rice.

Jollof Rice West African Rice Delight Origin: The Jollof rice delicacy is one of the most common dishes in Western African region. This food has continued to cause a stir online between Nigeria, Ghana and Senegal as to which country made the tastier jollof. This rice meal is a common feature at weddings, anniversaries, graduations, etc. Based on its name, the origins of jollof rice is said to have been from the Senegambian region that was ruled by the Jolof Empire. Ingredients and Recipe: Though there are considerable variations in the ingredients and recipes used by different countries, the everyday jollof rice consists of rice, tomato (or tomato paste), onions, salt, cooking oil, spices (such as nutmeg, ginger, garlic, etc) and chili. Other ingredients can be added such as ﬁsh, meats and vegetables. You can start with the preparation of the chicken, ﬁsh or beef by seasoning, boiling and frying it. The rest of the ingredients are then fried together, starting with the onions, tomatoes and spices. Then rice is added and cooked with the fried items until the meal is prepared.

Ethiopian Lentil Stew Ethiopian

Origin: Ethiopian lentil stew is a healthy lentil-spiced stew, mixed with Berbere spice and Niter kibbeh. Ingredients and Recipe: 1½ tablespoons berbere spice, 1-2 Tablespoons Spiced butter/Coconut oil/, ¼ cup cooking oil, 1 large onion diced, 2 tablespoons or more chopped parsley/Cilantro, 1 cup dry lentils soaked for 2 hours, 1 teaspoon coriander or cumin, 2 teaspoons minced garlic, ½ Tablespoon fresh minced ginger, 1-2 teaspoons smoked paprika, 1 Tablespoons Tomato paste, 2 cups or more broth Vegetable /Chicken or water, Salt and Pepper to taste. Heat up large sauce-pan with oil and ﬂavoured butter, then add berbere spice, ginger, onions, garlic, smoked paprika and cumin, then stir for 3 minutes till onions is radiant. Then add soaked lentils, tomato paste, stir and sauté for about 2-3 more minutes. Add stock/water if necessary to prevent any burns. Salt, bring to a boiling point and let it simmer until sauce thickens, it might take about 30 minutes or depending on how you like your lentils. Throw in some parsley, adjust for salt, pepper and stew consistency. Serve warm

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F E AT U R E A R T I C L E

Bobotie South African

Origin: Bobotie is said to be a Cape-Malay food variety. Once known in Europe in the mid ages after Crusaders brought turmeric from the East, the meal idea is that the mince should be creamy and tender in texture, which may take a longer and slower cooking. Recipe: To cook, ﬁre up your oven, butter a large casserole, and heat butter and oil in a saucepan. Then fry onion to shiny point, add curry powder, turmeric, and fry brieﬂy until fragrant. Mix in the minced meat. Mix together the crumbs, milk, lemon rind and juice, egg, salt, pepper, apricots, apple, sultanas (golden raisins) and almonds. Pile into the casserole and level the top. Roll up the leaves and bury them at regular intervals. Seal with foil and bake for 1 ¼ hours. Increase the oven temperature to 200°C (400°F). Mix together the eggs, salt and topping milk, then pour over and bake uncovered for 15 minutes till its lightly browned. Serve with Yellow Rice and Blatjang.

Pounded Yam Nigerian Traditional Dish Origin: The pounded yam and egusi soup combo is mostly loved by the people of the Southern and Western regions of Nigeria where it is often eaten at festivities, restaurants and individual homes as a staple meal. Ingredients and Recipe: 1 ½ tuber yam, 2 cups of ground egusi, 5 balls of fresh tomatoes, 8 pieces of fresh pepper, 1 medium size ice ﬁsh, palm oil, 1 ball of onion, 3 seasoning cubes, 1 small bunch ugu leaf. Peel, wash and boil yam till it is well-cooked. Then pound, mould the yam into balls and set aside. Preheat palm oil add blended onion, tomatoes (optional) and pepper, then stir to fry. Now, add ground egusi and little water to form a thick paste and fry till it's well fried. Add adequate amount of water, fried ﬁsh, seasoning cubes and salt to taste and. Finally add chopped ugu (pumpkin) leaves and allow to cook for 5 to 7 minutes. And the meal can be served pounded yam and egusi soup

Nyama Na Irio Kenya Origin: Most Kenyans see the 'Irio' as a favourite comfort food. Originally a Kikuyu staple meal that has spread through Kenya, Irio is made of mashed potatoes, beans, peas, onion, and corn. It can be served with spiced roasted meat, ﬁsh, etc. Recipe: Peel potatoes, slice and boil them in pot of water. Cook till the potatoes are tender. Remove water and mash the potatoes with pestle. Add peas, beans, onions and corn and mix till it blends. Season the mash with salt, pepper and butter to taste and serve hot.

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F E AT U R E A R T I C L E

Piri Piri Chicken Mozambique

Origin: The Peri Peri as it is sometimes called, is a spicy traditional Mozambique sauce, that goes for barbeque or salad and fries. Ingredients: 1 ½ teaspoons of chopped fresh ginger, 1 ½ teaspoons of salt, 4 bone-in chicken breast halves, 3 cloves of minced garlic, ¼ cup paprika, 2 tablespoons of hot chili powder and 1 cup fresh lemon juice. Recipe: Stir the paprika, garlic, chili powder, salt, lemon juice and ginger together. Wipe chicken with the mixture, place in a dish, and marinate for 3 hours. Preheat a grill for medium heat and place chicken into the grill and remove marinade. Cook for about 30 minutes, until the skin is slightly charred while turning occasionally and juices come off.

Kapenta with Sadza Zimbabwe Origin: Stewed Kapenta or Matemba is a local Zimbabwean and Zambian fish dish due to the large fisheries that harvest them in the nearby Lake Kariba. The kapenta fish is dried in the sun on a rack for a day or two for preservation. It is often served with sadza (ground maize), but can also go with rice. Ingredients: 1 large dried kapenta fish, salt and pepper to taste, 1 onion, 1 tomato, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 4 garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon of groundnut powder. Recipe: Boil kapenta in water for 15 minutes. Remove, pat it dry and then chop into thin chunks ready for frying. Chop onion, garlic, and add to a hot frying pan of olive oil, then cook until brown. Chop the tomato and add to the pan along with pepper, groundnut powder, salt and half cup of water. Add kapenta to pan, make sure to immerse it in the sauce. Cover pan and leave to simmer for 10 minutes on a low heat, stirring half way through. Take pan off the heat and leave to rest for 2 minutes to allow sauce to thicken.

Ful Medames Egypt Origin: This dish is largely known to be as old as the 'Pharoahs era' They're still nourishing Egyptians till today. Ful Medames is fava beans simmered with spices and olive oil. It can be taken for breakfast with eggs and pita bread. Ingredients and Recipe: 2 small cups of Egyptian fava beans (ful medames) soaked overnight (and left unpeeled), salt, pepper, olive oil, 1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley, crushed garlic, cumin and 3 quartered lemons.Cook beans till tender, drain in a fresh water, put back on fire and salt. Drain the beans and begin to mash, you can use some of the cooking liquid to mix, but ensure that the sauce isn't watery. Serve with ingredients dressing, a bottle of extra-virgin olive oil, the quartered lemons, salt and pepper, a little saucer with the crushed garlic, one with chili-pepper flakes, and one with ground cumin. The beans are eaten gently crushed with the fork, so that they absorb the dressing.

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F E AT U R E A R T I C L E

Suya

Nigerian Barbeque with Chilli Ingredients: 1 tablespoon ﬁnely ground roasted peanuts, 1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper, 1 teaspoon ground paprika, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon onion powder, ½ teaspoon onion powder, 1 ½ pounds' beef tri-tip steak, cut into bite-size pieces, 1 red bell pepper, cut into bite-size pieces. Recipe: Mix ground peanuts, paprika, salt, ginger, onion powder, cayenne pepper, and garlic powder, together in a bowl. Combine spice mixture and beef in a plate with a sealing cover and shake until well coated. Remove and marinate in the refrigerator, about 30 minutes. Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat and lightly oil the grate. Place beef onto the skewers then cook on the preheated grill, ﬂipping when needed until meat is browned and vegetables are soft. Pork, Fish Chicken can be substituted for beef. Preheat when using an oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

Zanzibari Biryanis Swahili This is a Swahili ceremonious meal of Indian origin with African adaptation based on rice and an exotic array of spices that reﬂects the Zanzibari feel of warm trade winds as you savour the dish served with meats, seafoods and vegetables. Ingredients and Recipe: Cook rice for 30 minutes and drain water. Fry onions in oil till its brown. Add ginger, garlic, cardamom, chili powder, curry, cumin, cinnamon stick, graham masala, dried plums, coriander, bay leaves, and salt. Cook tomatoes till its dry, then add meat, green chili, and cook until the meat is done. Add water if needed, add cilantro and add tomatoes. Mix saffron with hot water, layer rice and meat mixture and sprinkle with saffron mixture, then put in oven at 350°F for 20 minutes. Then layer the meat nicely on top of the rice, sprinkle some fried onions and cilantro, garnish with golden fried onions and chopped coriander and serve hot with your favourite salad.

Coconut Bean Soup Tanzania This is a Tanzania delicious vegetarian meal made from mostly store cupboard ingredients served in a bowl. The coconut bean soup is one healthy appetizer loaded with ﬂavors and is loved by everyone. Ingredients: Seeded and cut into chunks 2½ cups canned kidney beans with liquid (or black-eyed peas), 1 teaspoon curry powder, chopped ¼ teaspoon pepper, ½ cup of shredded coconut, tablespoon oil, 1 teaspoon salt, chopped ½ cup onions, chopped ½ cup green peppers, 3 Tablespoons margarine or butter, 2 cups of coconut milk, 1 cup ground fresh tomato, 3 cups of water and ½ cup of cooked rice. Recipe: Heat oil and sauté the onions until softened in a large saucepan. Add curry powder, green butter or margarine, peppers, salt, pepper and tomato and simmer for 2 minutes, then add water, the kidney beans with the liquid and the coconut milk. Simmer for 10 minutes, stir in the cooked rice and heat for about 2 minutes. Pour into bowls and top each serving with 1 Tablespoon of shredded coconut, and serve.

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CELEBRITY CHEF

Nostalgic Memories + Food Shows + Cook Books = Celebrity Chef! M

By: Emma Ossy Isidahomen

any creative people from the world over began their career paths after being inspired by others, nature, places, travel experiences and so on, but for Miyonse, nostalgic memories from the home front, food shows, experiences and cook books were the kicks he needed to start a multi-millionnaira brand that has so far taken him to celebrity heights. In the name of food, Miyonse has journeyed to several places as former Big Brother Naija housemate, as brand ambassador for Ajinomoto seasoning, and he dreams of exploring the world and sharing his culinary experiences.

Miyonse Oluwaseyi Amosu Nigeria

â&#x20AC;&#x153;

I enjoy the fusion cuisine because you can put different cultures and countries on a plate. I try to infuse local ingredients in my cooking. I do this to express myself and tell a story about my roots.

- Miyonse Amosu

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CELEBRITY CHEF

How did it all start? Share your culinary journey with us

Describe how you felt when you ﬁrst received payment for your services.

It all started from my mother's kitchen. I am the last child of four children. My mother ensured the boys assisted my sister in the kitchen and that was where I picked up a few things. I learnt how to make basic things such as tomato stew, soups, rice and cooking meat and chicken. I realised I was getting good at it so I started cooking a lot at home, after which I gained admission into the University of Lagos. When I cooked for my friends in the University, they encouraged me to do something greater with my culinary skills. I went to a culinary school in Nigeria and was retained as a culinary instructor. I moved to Abuja in 2017 to work at an Italian restaurant before leaving as the head chef. Right now, I mostly work with Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) brands; as I represent a few (Samvita Food, Indomie Noodles and Ajinomoto). I am also into private dining and training.

My joy knew no bound. It wasn't exactly a huge sum but it got me really excited. It made me realise that I was on the right path. Doing what you love doing and getting paid for it gives you a kind of indescribable joy.

How do you describe your style of cooking?

Sharing ideas loosely must be my biggest mistake. The importance of documenting and patenting ideas cannot be over emphasised, one should guard them with their life. We are in an era where idea rules the world. If you have a brilliant one, ensure you keep it and develop it.

What do you believe are the biggest misconceptions are about being a chef and why? From my personal experience people think chefs are proud but I think they are mistaken. Being conﬁdent isn't pride, it is you knowing your self-worth. I cannot speak for every chef, but personally I am not. Besides, you need a bit of swagger to carry the aura of being a chef. What has been your biggest mistake since setting up and what did you learn from it?

Where do you draw your inspiration?

How do you deal with criticism of your cooking?

I draw inspiration from different sources namely: food shows, Internet, cook books etc. Sometimes I just get inspired by my surroundings and I just head into the kitchen to create something amazing.

Honestly, it's a bitter pill to swallow but criticisms keep me on my toes and makes me want to strive and not relax. I deal with it by telling myself that I am not there yet and I can do better.

Is there any particular ingredient that you like to use more often?

Do you think being a great chef is a natural talent, or is it something anyone can learn?

I use all kind of ingredients. I have no particular preference for any. I use them as I deem ﬁt. I like to look at ingredients and it's a complementary power. How did you raise funds to setup your business? Majority of funds have been from endorsement deals; and also investors who believe in my vision.

Talent wouldn't even cut it. You need to put in the work. To be great, you can learn Talent wouldn’t even cut it. You need to put in the work. To be great, you can learn and you can also be talented but above all you need to put in the work and trust in God. -

and you can also be talented but above all you need to put in the work and trust in God. In today's struggling economy, what steps have you taken to continue to lure consumers in? The kind of work I do; branding and positioning is really important. I ask myself “Who am I targeting?” “What do I seek to achieve by targeting these people?” When your objectives are clearly stated, you are able achieve results. What is your favourite cuisine to cook? I love the Italian cuisine. What advice would you give to a young culinary student? Success wouldn't come overnight. When I ﬁrst started, I did a lot of free jobs, I put in extra hours to learn the craft. You need Grace from God and hard work to get to the top. What are your top (3) tips for running a successful restaurant? First is the business angle; ensure your overhead cost isn't more than your revenue; meaning you must make money because that is why you opened the restaurant in the ﬁrst place. Second is giving your customers an experience. Your food and drinks need to be great. Your customer service must be top notch so when the customers walk in they know they are in for an experience of a lifetime. Lastly, treat your employees well. This cannot be overemphasised. And you need the social media to thrive in this current age. If someone gave you $100,000 to invest in your business by the end of the week or lose it, what would you do? I will expand my business.

Miyonse Amosu 36

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CELEBRITY CHEF

Zola Nene South Africa By: Emma Ossy Isidahomen

Where Simplicity Meets Resolve Zola has had her culinary journey spanning over a decade. Although she had other interests, she pursued her love for food before, during and after her schooling years in the United Kingdom by deciding to go all out; enrolling in in culinary institutions, taking up cooking on TV, developing recipes and food styling for publications as well as brands. During these developmental and experimental years, she got to work with some top of the crop chefs in the UK's local industry such as Margot Janse of Le Quartier Francais and Chris Erasmus of Foliage Restaurant. She now has her own cooking show called â&#x20AC;&#x153;CELEB FEASTS WITH ZOLAâ&#x20AC;? which began broadcasting in 2018 on Mzansi Magic on DSTV. So far, she has published two award-winning cookbooks, Simply Delicious (2016) and Simply Zola (2018). Zola sheds more light on her journey, her challenges and her triumphs in this interview. Enjoy the read:

Photo Credit:Lisa Skinner

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CELEBRITY CHEF

How did it all start? Share your culinary journey with us

How did you raise funds to setup your business?

just focus on putting out my best work and being authentic to what and who I am.

My culinary career spans over 10 years and started during my 2-year study gap in England. After studying Bachelors of Commerce in Law for 2 years, I realised that it was not the career path that I wanted to follow. So, I applied for a UK holiday working visa and ventured off to England to discover what it is that I really wanted to do. I've always been interested in food so decided to look for a job in a professional kitchen. I worked in a Brasserie in Cheshire for two years, ﬁrst as a hot section chef, then as the head pastry chef.

I saved up money while working full time and as soon as I'd saved up enough to be self-sustainable within my business, I resigned from my full time job and focused on building and strengthening my Zola Nene Chef brand.

Do you think being a great chef is a natural talent, or is it something anyone can learn?

After my two-year stint in England, I returned to South Africa and immediately enrolled at the Institute of Culinary Arts in Stellenbosch. During my studies, I got to work with some amazing top chefs in the local industry. After graduating, I moved to Johannesburg and worked in a large catering company as a catering manager. It was around that time when Expresso, a national morning breakfast show, was conceptualised. When the producers were looking for a Food Stylist for the show, they called me up and offered me the job. I was Head of Food Department and Resident Chef on the show for 7 years. Where do you draw your inspiration? I draw inspiration from so many things. Sometimes, it's seasonality and I look at what's in season and create recipes around them. Othertimes, I draw inspiration from nostalgic memories where I recreate childhood favourites that I grew up eating but give them my own updated twist. I also draw inspiration from people's dietary restrictions or preferences. It's a fun challenge to create gluten free or vegan versions of recipes at times. Is there any particular ingredient that you like to use more often? I love mealie meal, it's deﬁnitely one of my top 3 ingredients in my pantry. I think it's so versatile and so underused. There are so many ways I love to cook it and enjoy it, smooth and creamy as a porridge, rich and buttery with a stew, stiff and sliced topped with an egg, crumbed and fried as a fritter the ways to prepare and eat it are endless! I love it!

Describe how you felt when you first received payment for your services. My first big food styling contract was for an Italian liqueur brand that was introducing their product to the SA market. It was so nerve-wracking knowing that they were trusting me to create the food and style their content. I put my all into that shoot to make sure it was perfect. It was the most accomplished feeling ever to know that I could rise to the challenge and get paid for it. I definitely celebrated after that job was done and I got the cheque. What do you believe are the biggest misconceptions are about being a chef and why? I think the biggest misconception is that everyone who cooks professionally is a chef... that's not the case. Being a Chef is a qualification just like any other profession. I studied very hard (3 years to be exact) to obtain my chef qualification, which is why I use the title so proudly. I think that since being a chef has become more popular over recent years, it's become fashionable for people who enjoy cooking to call themselves “chefs”.

I think that anyone can learn to be a great chef as long as you hone your skill; however, a passion for food cannot be taught, that is part of your genetic makeup. A passionate chef is where natural talent and learnt skill work in perfect synchronicity... that's when magic happens. What advice would you give to a young culinary student? Buckle down, work hard and keep your head up. Being a chef is a challenging career, but If you're passionate about food, then you're in for an amazing ride. If someone gave you $100,000 to invest in your business by the end of the week or lose it, what would you do? I think that sharing and gaining knowledge is the best investment one can make. I'd invest in travel with the aim to discover the world through food. I'd spend a few months in different countries with different chefs learning from them about their culture through the food. Discovering new tastes and ingredients to expand my culinary repertoire and keep growing.

What has been your biggest mistake since setting up and what did you learn from it? Being a business owner is a constant learning experience. I've made tons of mistakes, but I think that's how you learn and grow. The important part is that you continuously learn from past mistakes and not repeat them. How do you deal with criticism of your cooking? Everyone is entitled to an opinion, so if criticism is part and parcel of the business. You can't please everyone all the time, so I

A passionate chef is where natural talent and learnt skill work i n p e r f e c t s y n c h r o n i c i t y. . . that's when magic happens

Zola Nene

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CELEBRITY CHEF

An African Baker with FRENCH sprouts Nigeria By: Emma Ossy Isidahomen

Alex Oke is a Nigerian Chef based in Lagos. He is passionate about bread, pastry and confections. He trained in both the culinary and pastry arts (classical/ contemporary French cuisine) at the Pacic Institute of Culinary Arts (PICA) in Vancouver, Canada. He currently owns XO Boutique Bakery on Victoria Island in Lagos where he features traditional French and new world breads, viennoiserie, and pastries with a modern air. Alex is excited at what young African chefs are doing with evolving local cuisines, identifying as a traditionalist with regards to French pastry and hopes to do more with local West African and Nigerian bread, pastry and confections. Here is an excerpt from a brief chat with Business Elites Africa on his journey so far:

Pay isn't always commensurate with talent/skill in the Nigerian culinary space. I had to work my way up the ladder to where I am today. – Chef Alex

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CELEBRITY CHEF

How did it all start? Share your culinary journey with us Both my parents cooked. It wasn’t seen in our home as a gender speciﬁc role, and some of my earliest memories were of food and cooking. After a corporate career change, I enrolled in culinary school in Vancouver, Canada. One could say that I'm trained mainly in classical and contemporary French cuisine. How do you describe your style of cooking? Modern French with elements of the new world, and Nigerian inﬂuences.

wasn't quite ready for, I've learned to always be responsive to the market i.e. your loyal customer base.

In today's struggling economy, what steps have you taken to continue to lure consumers in?

How do you deal with criticism of your cooking?

I focus on product quality and branding. My business has always occupied a niche rather than mass market space. We're doing just ﬁne.

Quite well actually, but then again, I've spent enough time in the Lagos culinary space to know what I'm talking about. Sometimes customer tastes aren’t quite reﬁned as they'd like to lead on, or they make criticisms to impress their friends with their knowledge of food. Misguided or not, if a customer doesn't like something I've cooked then I offer it on the house, or ask if they'd like to have it remade more to their liking.

Where do you draw your inspiration? Sensory experiences, such as smelling spices in Zanzibar, or visiting ﬁsh markets in Lagos. Is there any particular ingredient that you like to use more often?

Do you think being a great chef is a natural talent, or is it something anyone can learn? Talent without hard work leads to a lack of discipline. So I'd rather hire a hardworking cook and train her, talented or otherwise.

How did you raise funds to setup your business?

I offered items which the Lagos market

Work until you can't stand anymore, then sleep for four hours and get back to your culinary school or internship. Never talk back to an established chef who offers to train you even if you don't agree with his or her methods, be like a sponge and soak it all up. Always have your goal in sight so one day, you'll be in control of your own destiny.

If someone gave you $100,000 to invest in your business by the end of the week or lose it, what would you do?

Describe how you felt when you ﬁrst received payment for your services.

What has been your biggest mistake since setting up and what did you learn from it?

What advice would you give to a young culinary student?

Keep your production and overheads lean. Focus on quality consistency. Always provide service with a smile.

Organically, through a loyal following of niche customers in the Lagos market.

That our lives are glamorous, and we all have massive tempers which cause us to throw things around the kitchen. The truth is I've met crazy chefs and those who are incredibly meek. TV created a lot of these misconceptions.

I enjoy baking bread.

What are your top (3) tips for running a successful restaurant?

(Laughs) Cardamom (vanilla beans)

Not very elated, to be honest. Pay isn't always commensurate with talent/skill in the Nigerian culinary space. I had to work my way up the ladder to where I am today. What do you believe are the biggest misconceptions about being a chef and why?

What is your favourite cuisine to cook?

I would begin the process of creating systems that are transferable in a franchise context. I would acquire more ﬁxed assets and ramp up production and brand presence across Lagos.

“

…. if a customer doesn't like something I've cooked, I offer it on the house, or ask if they'd like to have it remade more to their liking – Chef Alex

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Issue 105

U P C O M I N G I S S U E

The Business of

Healthcare Meet Africa's Top Medical Minds

ARTICLE

MEMORABLE

LEADERSHIP SKILLS By: Kimberly Deas

Just because you own a company, does not mean you are a leader. Yes, that is right. You could actually own the company and NOT be the leader of the company. In order to be a leader, people have to WANT to follow you. If people are being forced to follow you, soon you will be replacing them with other people. This is not leadership, it is a dictatorship and few businesses thrive long-term under this type of system. John Maxwell, the leadership expert, says, “in becoming a person of inuence, there are 5 levels of leadership: position, permission, production, people development, and pinnacle.”

"The Key To Successful Leadership Today Is Inﬂuence, Not Authority." - Kenneth Blanchard, University of Massachusetts, Schatz, Managing By Inﬂuence, (Prentice-Hall, 1986)

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ARTICLE

accomplish. In order to be a memorable leader, you need to practice memorable leadership traits and develop your leadership skills. 1. Lead by example. Although I recently heard a “corporate” person say, “What we teach is leading by nonexample.” And while this got a chuckle from the room of executive leaders, the sad truth is that the standards that you set for yourself are the standards that you accept from your people.

The position leader – people follow because of this person's position. This is the president who people follow because he owns the company and they can't ﬁnd another job. Many are not happy with type of leader. The permission leader – people follow because they want to, they like you. The production leader – people follow because of what you have done for the organisation. The people development leader – people follow because of what you have done for them. The pinnacle leader – people follow because of who you are and what you represent. As you mature in your leadership, you will rise through the leadership ladder and it is at the higher levels where you start to develop memorable leadership skills. In order to effectively lead people, you need to be at a higher level of leadership than they are. For example, if you are a production level leader and hire a people development leader for your company, sadly, that person will eventually either get ﬁred, because you will feel they are trying to “take over” or they will leave feeling like they are not comfortable with your leadership style. In order to attract the best people and create a memorable company, you need to be the best leader you can be by developing your leadership skills. As you develop these skills, it will become obvious that being a great leader and even a memorable leader is not as easy as those who have done it make it look. Leadership is one of those skills that done well looks very easy, but takes years of learning to 46

Take for example eating. If you are a health nut and focus on eating healthy, you will not recommend bringing in pizza for lunch every day. You will recommend a healthier option. Now apply it to business, if you are a person that values time, and is always on time, you will expect the same from others. If you are always late, you will not make a big deal when others are late. You are setting the example either way. There is an old Turkish proverb that says, “The ﬁsh rots from the head down.” As the leader of your organisation or business, it is up to you to set the pace and establish the standards, high or low. So, in order to hold your team to higher standards and strive for excellence, you need to hold yourself to higher standards ﬁrst. It really does start with you. It is easy to say you will lead by example; it is another thing to actually do it. Here is how one memorable leader did it. Sir Colin Marshall of British Airways, attended every

session of his companies customer-care program. He knew that by attending these sessions he was showing that he really did “put people ﬁrst” and it was not just something that he said. He led by example. Application: In what area do you need to step up and lead more by example? Choose one area and decide how you will lead by example! 2. Treat people as equals. Years ago in the corporate world, there was a clear distinction between the leaders and the followers. Some companies even had complete suites for just the executives. The message was clear, we are special and important and you are not. Although having their own suite, surely, the owners and key executives felt special and important, but it really created a separation in the company. This separation hampers team building, demotivates staff and discourages input from those working directly with the customers since they are “separated” from the key decision makers, both physically and psychologically. Many companies today have transitioned to a more egalitarian way of working. This method of working emphasises that all employees have equal rights regardless of their job status, race, ethnicity, gender or political views. It is a more inclusive way of working that doesn't depend on job titles and descriptions. This produces a stronger team atmosphere which can increase overall productivity and morale.

Rough Waters Are Truer Tests Of Leadership. In Calm Water Every Ship Has A Good Captain.”

- Swedish proverb

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ARTICLE

Bill Gates realised this and when he worked in Germany, he instructed his staff to use the less informal and personal “Du” instead of using the proper and formal “Sie” for him in his memos and letters. This small act motivated employees and encouraged them to recognise a more egalitarian way of working. And this is one trait that made Bill Gates memorable as a leader. Application: In what ways can you treat your people more as equals? 3. Enrol your team. Yes, you are likely the owner of the business and everyone in the business technically works for you, but they don't have to. You heard that right – they don't have to. They can leave. So, although you “sign” their paycheck, you still have to enrol them into wanting to work for you. Business owners that take the time to enrol their employees into their vision and help them understand the mission of the company ﬁnd their teams are more engaged, more loyal and have a deeper level of commitment to the company. This produces a higher level of productivity and quality of the product for the customer. One leader that leveraged this memorable trait is James Dyson, founder of the vacuum cleaner company Dyson. He does not do memos or require dress shirts and ties. He understood the principle of enrolment and to make sure every employee understood the product they were selling, James, required everyone – regardless of their pay grade - to must build a new vacuum cleaner their ﬁrst day and then they can purchase it for 5 pounds. By requiring every employee to build a vacuum cleaner, each employee has a deeper understanding of the process and the requirements to assemble the product. He also allows them to purchase the product at a greatly discounted price. This ensures each employee can own the product and have a deeper connection with the product than just saying, I work there. Application: What can you do to further enrol your team into the vision of your company? 4. Be humble. As the owner, the big chief, the head of the company, it is easy to

think there are certain tasks that are “below” you. That is why you have “people,” right? Sadly, many leaders of company have become too big for the little things, but it is the little things that truly matter. It is easy to think that, “someone else should do that, not me.” Some of the most memorable leaders in history were never too big to do the small things. Being humble is a leadership trait that endears people to you and lets them see your “more human” side. Of course, they know you are the boss and the leader, but when you take the time to do things, you don't have to do, this creates a level of respect that cannot be created in any other way. Take for example, Michael Grade, now general director of BBC. Back when he was CFO, an occasion occurred when the news department was short staffed; he stepped in and acted as a junior researcher to cover a shipwreck story interviewing a member of the coast guard. It was not his job, but years later, people still talk about this simple act. Application: What little things have you been passing off that you could do to show a more humble side? 5. Have a vision – a big vision. As a leader, it is your job to lead the team. In order to know where you are leading them to, you have to ﬁrst have a vision of where you want to go. The old proverb says, “Without a vision the people perish.” This is true with teams as well. Without a vision, the team will perish. But it just can't be a small vision, like we are going to survive this year. Oh no, small visions will not motivate or inspire anyone. Only a compelling vision can change the world and inspire your team to greatness. A memorable leader needs to have a grand vision, in fact, the bigger and bolder the vision; the more inspiring the vision will be to the team. Take for example, John F. Kennedy, he had a vision of putting a man on the moon by the end of the decade, Eleanor Roosevelt had a vision of equality for men and woman, and many others ﬁrst had a grand vision before they ever made it a reality. To be a memorable leader, you MUST have a grand vision.

Application: How can you increase the grandness of your vision to inspire and motivate your team to greatness? 6. Integrity – To live with integrity you must live your truth. This means being consistent in your communication. We often hear “walk the walk” and that is good, but a memorable leader does more than walk the walk. They don't just look good on the outside, they are consistent in their message and live truthfully. Take this story for example. A young mother travelled quite a distance to see and meet with Gandhi. When she ﬁnally got to speak with him, she asked him to tell her young son not to eat sugar. Gandhi said, “I cannot, but come back in a month.” Angered, she left for home and came back in a month, not sure what to expect. This time when she saw Gandhi, he told the young boy not to eat sugar, “it is not good for your health.” The mother asked, “Why could you not say that a month ago.” Gandhi replied, “I was still eating sugar.“

Application: In what area do you need to live more truthfully? In the end, memorable leadership habits can be summed up by being Goose-like: a. Have a plan. Geese can fly 71% further when they fly in a “v” formation b. Stick to the plan. Geese always fly in formation. Do what you say and let your word be your honour. c. Honk. For geese honking is a form of encouragement. Praise them regularly. d. Care. For geese, when 1 is injured 2 fly down to be with it until it is better or dead. Stand by each other. Being a memorable leader is not hard or difficult; it is truly a series of actions repeated over time. As the old saying goes, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit.” Being a memorable leader is a habit.

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SOCIAL MEDIA CHEF

Onwe Arinze Pius Architect/Graphics Designer Ebonyi State, Nigeria

Magazine Review: Every young African Entrepreneur who desires to Excell and grow their startups by tapping into the Beauty of Tech opportunities in the world needs to be subscribed to this iconic magazine. I couldn't resist the lure of it's rich contents, to say the least. Also, it's absolutely affordable for it's value in content. In my opinion, the number one business magazine in Africa. Business Summary: Votophics Media is a multimedia tech-startup company. Our focus is on providing quality 2D/3D graphics for both print and screen. Our services include: 2D/3D graphics design, 2D/3D animation, high quality video/motion picture editing, Architectural Design Presentation in both motion and still pictures etc. Our work is undertaking by young experts whose skills compete with the standard in developed countries.

@VotophicsMedia @onlyPAH

Onyekachi Esther Uloaku Skincare Therapist Lagos State, Nigeria

Magazine Review: If it is not business, it is not business with Business Elites Africa magazine. It is a timeless compendium that showcases businesses, support and align businesses with 21st century trends in the African continent. Truely, they are leading the way and setting the pace. Business Summary: Organic skincare products and body enhancements. Here at CHERUBIC COUNTENANCE SKINCARE beauty is not just a quality, it's a way of life that We love to share with the world. We give all our customers a new and ﬂawless, life changing look, from an enchanting skin to a ﬂawless body and angelic hair. So prepare to be a head turner with the help of our 100% organic products you will come to us an ordinary person, and leave having pure CHERUBIC COUNTENANCE. cherubic_countenance_skincare

Joachim

Edwin Njoroge Kimani

Entrepreneur / Operation Manager Lagos State, Nigeria

Lawyer Nairobi, Kenya www.avikeleservices.com

Magazine Review: Business Elites Africa, has become one of the most widely recognized and prestigious magazine in circulation today. It's has proven itself as a leader in business journalism, as well as a go-to source for company and personnel proﬁles and information. I like Business Elites Africa magazine mainly because there is so much content packed into one, nicely bound publication. As an added bonus, the pages are always ﬁlled with beautiful images and graphics to enhance the journalism, which creates a very pleasant read. To my amazement, every time I read an issue of Business Elites Africa Magazine, I always walk away feeling so much smarter.

Magazine Review: If you are looking for the meaning of 'Africa Rising', look no further. This is a great mirror into African business, investing and innovations by African entrepreneurs and those with an interest in investing in the continent. It features those who are disrupting, shaping and inﬂuencing industries and also regularly features advice on how to choose an investment strategy that will help improve and meet your enterprise goals.

Business Summary: Tech Vase Gadgets Zone is a fast growing tech sales company in Nigeria. It was established in 2018 out of the curiosity to bridge the knowledge gap between technology gadgets and users of these devices. It's our mission to educate, show people how the everyday gadgets being used can create high performance is their lives. We are inspired to increase the technology knowledge of everyone and provide wonderful user experience with tech gadgets.

@techvase @techvase

Business Summary: Avikele Services, is a professional services and consulting firm that was established in Nairobi, Kenya. We are based in Nairobi, Kenya. We offer tailored services delivering Legal, Tax, Accounting, Audit and Consulting services. Our approach utilises a team of professionals who understand the specific challenges and opportunities of the market we serve and have extensive experience operating in it. We also benefit from the knowledge and resources of our firm allowing us to blend international best practices and global methodologies with our own sensitivity to local market conditions.

@Avikele Legal Services @AvikeleS

@techvase

Chinonso Ekelem Medical Doctor Anambra State, Nigeria

Magazine Review: Business Elites Africa’s speciﬁc content is one of the strategic differences distinguishing it from other business publications, it empowers start-ups, small businesses and business projects. Business summary: We're basically a business crowdfunding platform whereby people create their various businesses or projects sourcing for funds. But it goes beyond that because before you can be able to get that fund, you must have gotten enough engagement on the platform to convince investors that people are interested in this business and it's visible. It's a simple platform where you register, login and do whatever you came in to do. Which can be either creating business, commenting and sharing or investing. Any business that's fully funded via our platform, we get 5% of the return.

@naturfund @NaturFund @naturfund_com

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SOCIAL MEDIA CHEF

Oluloro O. Owolabi

Uenwa Mary Jecinta

Loretta C. Enwesi

Johnson Ifeanyi Kelvin

CEO Dawagold Logistics Ondo State, Nigeria

Business Lagos State, Nigeria

Logistics/Courier Services Lagos State, Nigeria

Oil Spill Responder/Entrepreneur Lagos State, Nigeria

Magazine Review: I really appreciate the opportunity Business Elite Africa is given to young entrepreneurship. Am glad am one of the magazine face, it's a stepping stone to people like us. And I promise to introduce the magazine to other people around Africa, and the whole world.

Magazine Review: Business Elites Africa Magazine, is a magazine made for Africa entrepreneur. It also shares the success stories of entrepreneurs and SME's. It encourages both young and upcoming entrepreneurs. It also helps in promoting businesses.

Business Summary: Dawagold Nigeria Limited is the parent company of Dawagold media and beam. we deals with professional printing and branding and we recruit students from Nigeria for our partner institutions in over 17 countries on the world: we have partner institutions in Ireland, Canada, USA, Poland etc.

Business Summary: Jacy Foodies and abacha republic is an event catering Companies that was founded on 10 of September 2017. It was built with the sole purpose of overseeing and showcasing the Igbo culture through meals, in a healthy way, our presentation is second to none as we hold our beloved clients in high esteem.

Magazine Review: Informative and refreshing feeds/articles Business Summary: Lagos based reliable delivery partner, we offer same day delivery services at affordable rates. Nationwide/worldwide delivery available.

Magazine Review: Why i like Business Elites Africa magazine is the way they present African entrepreneurs to Africa and the world at large. This will give rise to business opportunities for young and vibrant African entrepreneurs who are willing to compete and showcase their ideas in the business world. Business Summary: Garamhotels is a hotels aggregation platform dedicated to offering our customers the ability to quickly ﬁnd hotels within their budget and location of choice in Nigeria. Today we boast of over 1300 hotels and booking is made possible by our collaboration with hotels.ng.

@strikersanmi

@abacha republic and Jacy's foodies

@Maria's Signature

hotelgaram

@Oluloro96

@jacy_foodies

@mariassignaturelogistics

Gramhotels

Israel Kashim Audu

Founder Kaduna International Film Festival / CEO EzzyKash Media Kaduna State, Nigeria

Magazine Review: It really a good and wonderful one out there there and something to gain from. Business Summary: EzzyKash Media Concept is an organized media outﬁt known for event management and branding, the ﬁrm was created and registered with CAC on the 25th of April 2018 .

@kaduna international lm festival @kadiff2 @kadunalmfestival @ezzykashmediaconcept

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A F R I C A’ S T R E N D I N G C H E F ' S O N S O C I A L M E D I A

AFRICA’S

TRENDING CHEFS ON

SOCIAL MEDIA By: Oluwole Victor

eautiful food images have been a staple of Instagram since its inception, and Africa is home to some of the tastiest, appetising and delicious dishes that leave people licking their ngers and asking for more. However, the best social media marketing for restaurants goes beyond pretty images to really engage the audience with creative content and compelling brand narratives. There are many continent-based and diaspora African chefs/foodies who share special recipes of some of the most popular and soughtafter African dishes, but here are some of our favourites:

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SOCIAL MEDIA CHEFS

ifys.kitchen . Follow

Ifeyinwa Mogekwu

-list Instagram food bloggers like @ifys.kitchen know how to mix ingredients for our own ease and delicious enjoyment. Whether through colourful images so rich you swear you could taste it or through videos so tempting you can imagine the smell of it being prepared right before your eyes; just a glance at her Instagram page will mouth water. Ifeyinwa Mogekwu has been a food blogger since before blogging became a popular hobby. As social media inuencer, and digital brand ambassador for popular cooking brands, @Ifys.kitchen playfully weaves together her Nigerian heritage with her worldly cuisine interests, producing recipes that are easy enough for beginner level cooks to emulate and recreate. In an exclusive interview with Business Elites Africa, Ifeyinwa Mogekwu talks about the journey behind her successful Instagram food blog and, tips on how to build a protable food blog.

My style of cooking is homely, simple dishes but full of ﬂavour. I cook from my heart and I don’t think there are rules that must be followed when cooking.”

How did it all start? Share your culinary journey with us.

How do you describe your style of cooking?

My culinary journey started as far back as when I was in primary school. My mum always insisted I stayed with her in the kitchen when I was young and that was how I got exposed to cooking. My mum was my ﬁrst teacher and then I basically became self-taught. I learnt from every resource available to me…cookbooks, TV shows, YouTube, friends…everybody and anything. I also learnt a lot from trial and error. I decided to share my passion with the world sometime in 2015 using Instagram as my major platform.

My style of cooking is homely, simple dishes but full of ﬂavour. I cook from my heart and I don't think there are rules that must be followed when cooking. Where do you draw your inspiration? I draw inspiration from meals I eat when I go out, pictures of food and simply by opening my fridge and ﬁnding some ingredients and wondering how I can make a delicious meal from those ingredients.

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Is there any particular ingredient that you like to use more often?

not looking out for different textures in the meal, colour or anything like that.

That's easy. My three go-to ingredients are Onions, Garlic and Ginger. I feel like they give you that oomph in your dish.

Also, people think when they come to my house, there should always be something fancy or something freshly baked [laughs]. Biggest lie ever!!! You will probably ﬁnd your regular soups and stews.

Describe how you felt when you ﬁrst received payment for your services. I was over the moon because I had never envisaged that sharing my passion on Instagram could lead to ﬁnancial gains. I remember that it was sometime in 2016 that someone sent me a message asking me to cook with their product and publish the same on my Instagram page since I had quite a large following. She asked me how much my services cost and I said that I would do it for free. She refused and insisted on paying me. What do you believe are the biggest misconceptions are about being a chef and why? People think that most chefs tend to be critical or judgemental when they eat food cooked by people who are not exactly kitchen gurus. I disagree because I never do that. I just eat when I am hungry. I am 52

Ÿ Ÿ

How does one build a following? Ÿ Ÿ

How do you deal with criticism of your cooking? Hmmm… it used to hurt a lot and I used to get all defensive, but now I no longer bother myself. People have different ways of making a dish so if I do things differently from yours, it doesn't make me a bad cook.

Have beautiful looking food images. Show your personality and engage with your audience

Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ

Carve a niche for yourself and posts relevant contents. Always respond to comments or questions asked. Be sociable…it's called social media for a reason. Be original. Put out contents worth consuming.

Most importantly, remember that it takes time and hard work, so be patient and consistent in putting out great quality content.

What is your favourite cuisine to cook? I am very comfortable cooking any dish. I can't think of any particular one but I love Asian dishes in particular. What are your top (3) tips for running a successful Food Blog? Ÿ

Be consistent in putting out fresh and unique recipes

What's your biggest failure ever in the kitchen? My biggest failure in the kitchen was the day I grilled catﬁsh for my brother and when he ate it, he said, “you have just succeeded in making him hate catﬁsh”. I can laugh about it now but that day I felt so terrible. Thank God it was my brother and not a total stranger.

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ne of the better perks of running a food blog, or any blog for that matter, is the receiving of emails from folks and companies that want you to try out and review their products. Chani Solanki, the talented and extremely successful food blogger behind Pika Chakula, winner of Best Food Blog in Africa 2 years in a row and the Best in Kenya 3 years in a row—is one food blogger that has found a way to stand out in the saturated space of food bloggers, Instagrammers, and YouTubers. Chani brings recipes of all types to her audience across the continent and boasts partnerships with brands amongst the likes of Blue Band, Kingsmil Bread, and more. She has most deﬁnitely cemented her place amongst the elite of the food blogging world!

Kenya By: Victor Oluwole

In this interview with Business Elites Africa, Chani Solanki, talks to us about how she turned her love of cooking into a full-time career on social media, and to get an inside look into her creative process and forthcoming projects.

“

Right from when I got into it, I was determined to make it happen, and within a year, I was making more than I would have earned if I was working elsewhere.”

Chani Solanki How did it all start? Share your journey with us For me, it all started when I lost my brother, Rajan. He created the blog 8 years ago with the aim of showing people how to cook different cuisines using ingredients that are available locally. I took over the blog 6 years ago and it has been an incredible journey, from learning how to blog, food photography, videography, digital marketing, media, and so much more. The blog has now grown from what it used to be; we have produced videos that have garnered over 30 million views online, made the blog into a very successful business model, earning 8 awards, including the Best Food Blog in Africa 2 years in a row and the Best Food Blog in Kenya 3 years in a row too.

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How do you describe your style of cooking? I cook very simple meals that you can't really go wrong with if you just copied my recipes step by step. I love to experiment in the kitchen and I love to cook different cuisines all the time. On my blog, I cook a variety of cuisines using local ingredient substitutes and using local inﬂuences. Where do you draw your inspiration? I like to eat out and travel a lot, and when I travel, I love to eat. It is from there I learn the different ﬂavours and ideas for my new recipes. Is there any particular ingredient that you like to use more often?

recreate the dish. For me, many people see my recipes and think, “Chani is not a chef, so if she can do it, I can too.” How do you deal with criticism of your cooking? At home, my biggest critic is my husband. He has a really good palate, so I always look forward to what he has to say about every dish that I make. On the digital side, you always have to be prepared for positive and negative comments. If someone has tried my recipe and then gives feedback, I take it seriously; otherwise, I ignore them. There are lots of trolls out there who always want to put you down. Just ignore them and remember you can't please everyone. What is your favourite cuisine to cook?

Just one ingredient is a bit difﬁcult to mention, but I do like my pepper and garlic. Lots of garlic! Describe how you felt when you ﬁrst received payment for your services. It was a bittersweet moment. I was a little emotional because it was the day my late brother looked forward to. He knew that one day he would make his blog into a fulltime business for himself, but he didn't live to see it happen. Right from when I got into it, I was determined to make it happen, and within a year, I was making more than I would have earned if I were working elsewhere.

I love cooking Asian food- Thai, Chinese, etc. There are so many ﬂavour proﬁles and it's so much fun experimenting. What are your top (3) tips for running a successful Food Blog? I always emphasise these three things when it comes to running a successful food blog: 1. Good quality content: Content is king! Make sure you really invest your time in creating good content, be it recipes, reviews or videos.

What do you believe are the biggest misconceptions are about being a chef and why?

2. Consistency: Be consistent and patient. Blogs take a lot of time to grow, but if you post every once in a while, your following will take very long to grow. Once you post consistently, be patient. Remember, everything good takes time.

Firstly, I do not like to call myself a chef, because I am not. But I know that a lot of people get intimidated when there is a Chefs recipe because they feel it is years of experience and they wouldn't be able to

3. Be loyal to your fans: Once you have a following, be loyal to them. Don't ever promote to them products you personally don't believe in, make sure to respond to them and engage them. It really is all about

them, because without them seeing your content, it would mean nothing. How does one build a following on social media? It really takes a long time to build a following. The trick is to engage them and give them interesting and new content. For me, my Instagram stories bring in a lot of organic followers. I post regularly on my Facebook and Instagram, however, I post a lot of new content on my Instagram stories which include tips and tricks, restaurant reviews, etc. What's your biggest failure ever in the kitchen? From the top of my mind, I can think of 2 recipes that failed when I started off. One was mkate wa sinia for which my cooker at that time could not go to a very low ﬂame, so it burnt the bottom. The second recipe was a recent icebox cake that didn't set. Many other times, the recipes need a little tweaking and it works out. It's always trial and error when you are in the kitchen making new recipes. Always a learning curve. Tell us about your new cuisines, dishes, recipes or projects you're embarking on. I am always making new things in my kitchen so you will see a lot more of those coming up. I have just signed on as a brand Ambassador for Blue Band and Kingsmil Bread while also working with Daawat and NuVita, so there's a whole load of different recipes coming up with their products. We are also in the process of building our studios and they should be ready by the end of the year, after which there are a lot of expansion plans. This year has a lot of new things happening for the blog, so I'm super excited.

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FAFA GILBERTHAS ndudu_by_fafa . Follow Fafa Gilberthas put Ghanaian food on the global map so much that, she has been featured on ITV, This Morning, BBC, CNN, ABNTV, GBC & various magazines including Afro Retro Magazine to share her culinary and creative food skills with the world. Her IG page is is your destination for Ghanaian food.

RONKE EDOHO 9jafoodie . Follow Nigeria's Ronke Edoho shows up how to maintain a healthy diet while eating Nigerian food. This page offers recipes, ready to serve dishes and much more! Today, Ronke has advanced her mission by spreading healthy recipes across the world through her brand @9jafoodie

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DOBBY dobbyssignature . Follow

If you want to start learning about Nigerian food, this is a great place to start. Dobbyssignature is a foodie machine, knocking up the best of African cuisines on a weekly basis. Her page has all the best recipes for local and international dishes publishes recipes for Nigerian dishes, soups, snacks, and desserts.

KALUHI kaluhiskitchen . Follow Kaluhi Adagala is a globally renowned food blogger revolutionising Kenyan cuisine through her award winning food blog “Kaluhis Kitchen” and her globally available e-book “In My Kitchen”. Kaluhi learnt most of her culinary skills from her family and has put it to good use. Her blog was the Best Kenyan Food Blog in 2016 & 2017 and has been ranked amongst the top 30 blogs in the world on food by Prestel USA.

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I realised quite quickly though that in order to be good at this I would need to improve my photography so that drove me to push myself and now I'm also professional editorial food and lifestyle photographer.

An Embodiment of Food Recipes,

Styling & Photography

By: Emma Ossy Isidahomen

South Africa

am Linsell is an ardent cook who decided to quit corporate toil 10 years ago to build her dream life - food creativity and adventure. She took a big risk, started the rst online cupcake company in 2008 and leapt into food styling. She now runs a recipe, food and travel blog, drizzleanddip.com where she shares her daily culinary journey. With a background of a mix of hospitality management and food brand marketing, Sam got inspired to write two cookbooks – 'Drizzle & Dip' and 'Sweet'. The second, Sweet won a Gourmand award in South Africa and was a nalist in the Gourmand Best of the World cookbook competition under the pastry category. Sam loves to dream, eat and go on exploits. She tells about her cookery walk, style, experiments and much more in this interview with Business Elites Africa.

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How did it all start? Share your journey with us

constantly hunting everything delicious that crosses my path or what I seek out

I started drizzleanddip.com at the end of 2009 as a way to document and share recipes that I loved and to encourage myself to cook and bake more. The concept of cooking for other people whether you are doing it in real life or sharing your ideas over the internet often feels the same as it brings me a great amount of joy. From the moment I published my ﬁrst recipe I was completely hooked and knew this was something I wanted to really get stuck into. I realised quite quickly though that in order to be good at this I would need to improve my photography so that drove me to push myself and now I'm also professional editorial food and lifestyle photographer. I love that despite doing this for 9 years, I'm still learning every day. My ﬁrst cookbook was published in 2012 and my second in 2015.

Is there any particular ingredient that you like to use more often?

How do you describe your style of cooking? Delicious, approachable and fuss-free. I will always try and eliminate unnecessary steps and try to make the process of cooking and baking easier for my readers. Seasonal and new ingredients that I haven't worked with before also inspire me. I think having a sense of wonder around new food is contagious for me. Where do you draw your inspiration? I get my inspiration from all over. From dishes made by chefs in restaurants, to all food media and what I encounter on a supermarket shelf. I'm completely immersed in the world of food and am 60

I have a long list of favourite ingredients that I'm always using, but I'm never without good quality olive oil, maldon salt, butter, parmesan cheese, lemons, capers, anchovies, red wine, vinegar, vanilla and chilli (although I never overdo it with that). What do you believe are the biggest misconceptions about being a chef and why? People are often hesitant to cook for chefs or professional cooks because they feel intimidated by what they do, but chefs are generally fairly easy to please as they love food more than most. What is your favourite cuisine to cook? It's always a mood thing so I don't have one favourite cuisine. I feel very comfortable with Italian food so that would probably be a deep set default. I often crave South American and Mexican ﬂavours so I love going there, and then I love playing around Middle Eastern and Asian cuisines. What are your top (3) tips for running a successful Food Blog? I honestly don't think there is a formula for making a food blog or any blog work other than to try and create the best quality content that you can. The whole adage about 'content is king' holds true and if you are creating something that people like and want to share then you will succeed. In

a world with so many millions of blogs you really need to be extremely good in order to get far with it and to turn it into a profession. You have to create consistently and regularly and share all your creations across multiple social media platforms in order to get noticed. You will need to spend a lot of time developing those social media communities too. Try and create within a speciﬁc niche and remain as authentic as possible. How does one build a following on social media? It takes a lot of time investment to build a proﬁle on social media so you will need to dedicate energy towards that. Engagement and consistent messaging is also important as well as being authentic and vulnerable. What's your biggest failure ever in the kitchen? As a trainee chef I was tasked to make 50 litres of mayonnaise and I used all the dirty oil so it was a total disaster. Tell us about your new cuisines, dishes, recipes or projects you're embarking on. I'm quite keen to write another book and have a great idea, so I might get the wheels going on that. I've just shot someone else's cookbook so am really excited for that to be published next year. Otherwise I'm planning to carry on creating and discovering delicious recipes and sharing them across all my @Drizzleanddip platforms.

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IVY MANGO a_taste_of_zimbabwe . Follow Ivy is a master of Zimbabwean dishes. She makes unique and delicious colourful dishes that challenge the viewer's perception of Zimbabwean food. With over 60K followers, Ivy is on a quest to share her love of home-grown dishes with the masses.

AHANA GAUTAM Immaculatebites . Follow

Ahana Gautam is one food enthusiast who is changing the future of food with her talents, transforming pan-African dishes into elegant Afro-Caribbean cuisines! There's plenty of substance to be found on their blog, with recipes as niche as they come.

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KATELYN WILLIAMS thekatetin . Follow South African food stylist and food photographer, Katelyn Williams (aka The Kate Tin) is best known for her work on her blogâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;TheKateTinâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;South Africa's Best Food Blog 2014, 2015 & 2017. This blog plans to change the way people cook, eat, and share their desserts, so whether you're in the mood for a pie, ice cream, or a pastry, you're only two clicks away from the dessert of your dreams.

DI BIBBY bibbyskitchen . Follow Di Bibby's goal is to create extraordinary meals that are best shared with family and friends. Her blog hosts an extensive collection of recipes, including many South African favourites that have been reworked to suit modern times. Based in Johannesburg, Di also teaches monthly group cooking classes for those who would like to hone their baking and cooking skills.

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F E AT U R E A RT I C L E

Restaurant

101

By: Victor Oluwole

A Quick Guide to Becoming the Ultimate Restaurateur

pening a restaurant can seem overwhelming at first because it seems like there are million things you need to do. Well, that is because there are a million things you need to do and its not that bad at all. If you make a plan and you break what you have to do down into small easily accomplished steps, then you are going to be able to get through without a problem. The smaller the better! Once you line up all the steps and knock them off one at a time, you will see it is not that big of a deal. What you have to do is make sure you do everything you need to do and you have to do it in the right order so you don't miss anything, or you have to go back and fix the mistakes. To help you create the perfect recipe for success, we have developed a how-to-get-started guide that will give you all the ingredients you need to open your restaurant with confidence. 63

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differently. If you are aware of restaurants that have closed shop, try to identify why. Your research should also focus on what separates your projected restaurant from other restaurants in the area. If you really have to set yourself up for success, you have to try the competition area and you have to make sure that the restaurant you have in mind is going to be leaps and bounds better than the competition. If you can do that, you have a chance for success. Prepare a business plan The next thing you need to do to open a restaurant is prepare a business plan. The first part of the business plan must contain your “mission statement” and this really shouldn't be a long drawn-out thesis. It's usually a couple paragraphs—maybe one page—and it describes what type of restaurant you want open, your desired location, and an overview of the income in the area that you intend to open it. The second part of your business plan has to do with the numbers aspect and the first thing you need to do is prepare your financial projection. Even if you don't intend to source any capital from banks or investors, it is important that you organise your thoughts on paper. This allows you to see the big picture and easily identify all the obstacles and other things you may not have considered Research The food industry in general is very competitive, so it is imperative that you do your research before getting started. Research about the licences that you would need in order to open up a restaurant. Depending on the state that you live, you can research and find out about food safety and other types of courses that you need to take as well as other licences that you need to take. Try to find out what works, what doesn't, and what they would do

Location After doing your research, you need to start looking for a location and you need to make sure that you can afford that location. A piece of advice to anyone is to ﬁnd a restaurant that has gone out of business and secure that location because it's going to be a lot cheaper than building from the ground up. When you’re sure you have found the perfect place to set up your restaurant business, you need to create a menu plan.

Menu plan You probably already have a general idea of what you want to serve but menu engineering for a restaurant is really a science. There is an art to creating a profitable menu that the most amount of people in your market segment are going to enjoy and want to come back for, and that's a big part of the successful restaurant. Hiring and Training The people and employees that work for you are one of the most critical pieces of the puzzle. You have to know how to find good people, train them right, and get them to be an asset and not a headache. Marketing When is the right time to start marketing? The right time is almost immediately after you've come up with your business plan concept. What you want is for potential customers to be able to find basic information about your restaurant, and they should also feel excited to try your new restaurant. Here are some marketing tips to help you get to know your restaurant better: Ÿ

Try social media. Create Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts to share high-quality photos of your restaurant, menus, or processes of your cuisines. These help to communicate your brand. Ÿ Put your business on Google Map. Your restaurant must be easy to navigate. Include basic information about your restaurant, including your address, phone number, service hours, menu, etc. Ÿ Offer promotions to the ﬁrst customers. Guests will remember your exceptional hospitality and will be more likely to recommend and return to your restaurant.

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12Key

Performance Indicators (KPI) for Business Managers

Part One

By: Zionite Consulting Group

Key performance indicators are metrics that help business managers understand operations, customer, and product performance over a period of time. It is a type of performance measure used by managers and business decision makers for evaluation of organisational strategic initiatives. Choosing the right KPIs for your business unit or organisation must be preceded by a proper understanding of the business unit's or enterprise-wide vision and strategy. Hence, KPI's are business unit, organisation and industry-speciﬁc. Good indicators are helpful in ensuring that the Vision Statement (the where, future possibility) and the Mission Statement (the why and how) are achieved over the long run.

Once a business manager has identified the business specific goals and objectives, it is necessary to develop data points to monitor strategy effectiveness towards the achievement of the business unit's or enterprise-wide defined goals. Defining and Selecting KPIs Managing processes and achieving goals are critical to business success. A good approach to defining and selecting key performance indicators is to examine the three key pointers in the term- from the viewpoint of the organisation (Agheyisi, 2009), as follows; 1. Key- suggests a critical factor, which is very important to the organisation. 2. Performance- suggests a process, an action which is known to everyone. 3. Indicator- a gauge for a defined outcome in an organisation. At the heart of key performance indicators selection is the measure of vision and strategy drivers. Here are a few Key performance indicators that cut across most organisational vision and strategy maps:

1. Revenue Growth Rate This is a measure of the change in sales volume over a given period of time. Sales growth analysis is a key component of every organisation's business strategy. Tracking revenue growth rate against set goals is crucial to the long-term health of your organisation. Revenue growth rate not only serves as a measure of the effectiveness of marketing and strategic plan, but also allows for management planning, forecasting and resource allocation. Revenue growth rate may be measured weekly, monthly, quarterly or per the strategic plan. 2. Net Profit/ Net Profit Margin Business goals in modern times are shifting from the traditional goal of making money to delighting customers. Profit is a byproduct of customer satisfaction. While a growing number of companies have embraced continuous innovation as a way of delighting their customers, these companies are more profitable over the long run as crazy as it may sound. Net profit often referred to as the bottom line, is a measure of the profitability of a company. It is the difference between a

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company's sales or revenue and its total cost for a specific period. Net Profit Margin is the percentage of sales in excess of the total cost. It is the most stringent measure of profitability, and a good measure of time-series analysis. 3. Return on Investment Return on investment (ROI) is a financial metric used to measure the efficiency of an investment. ROI uses a simple formula to measure the return of an investment relative to the cost of the investment. The results of the calculation are expressed in percentage. Business managers are able to use ROI as a measure of opportunity cost and risk management in business decision. ROI = (Gain from the investment over x period of time – Cost of investment over same x period of time) / Cost of Investment over same x period of time. 4. Cash Conversion Cycle Cash conversion cycle gives business managers a better way of looking at liquidity. Proper cash flow planning demands complete understanding and control of cash inflow and cash outflow. It is simply the difference between the time it takes you to pay your suppliers and the time it takes for your customers to pay you. The result from the cash conversion cycle calculation can be either positive or negative. Let's assume that ABZ Inc. is an online retail company. ABZ pays its

suppliers 30 days from the invoice date; it takes ABZ 14 days to convert its inventory, and 5 days from the sale date for all cash collection. Cash conversion circle is calculated by adding the number of days to sell the products (inventory conversion period) and the cash collection period (payable conversion period); subtract the sum from your supplier payment cycle (30 days per this example). Cash Conversion Cycle (-11 Days) = (14+5) - 30 Every business manager should desire a negative Cash Conversion Cycle. 5. Customer Profitability Score (CPS) Do you know your customer profitability score? CPS is a metrics for measuring the amount of profit derived from each customer, after deducting the costs of acquiring and keeping them loyal to your brand (advertising, customer service, and innovation). Understanding a customer's impact on your company's bottom-line is critical in management planning and customer retention resource allocation. Faced with resource and cost constraints, business managers must strive to refocus on the profitable customers and eliminate customers that are costing you money; thereby increasing productivity and customer satisfaction. To calculate your CPS, first determine the revenues earned from a customer in a given period, then subtract the cost of supporting the customer in the same period.

6. Customer Retention Rate How much of your organisation's resources are allocated to customer retention? Is a customer retention strategy critical to your organisation? Customer retention is a by-product of customer satisfaction. Low customer satisfaction will lead to high customer defection or churn rate. Customer loyalty programmes are evolving in a highly competitive market. Make your customers feel truly special and you'll keep 'em. The cost of customer retention is always lower than the cost of acquiring a new customer. As the saying goes, “it is cheaper to keep 'em.” A high customer retention rate will afford you the following: a. Sustainable growth b. More revenue – cross-sell opportunities c. Reduced cost of new customer acquisition. To calculate your customer retention rate: # of existing customers at the end of the period ( – ) # of newly acquired customers during that period ( / ) # of existing customers at the beginning of the period ( * ) 100 Stay tuned for the part two of this sizzling article. We'll be discussing the following KPIs in the next edition of Business Elites Africa: Customer Acquisition Cost, Churn Rate, Capacity Utilisation Rate, Earned Value Metric, Employee Engagement Level, and Human Capital Value Added. By: Zionite Consulting Group

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A QUICK GUIDE TO BUSINESS

REGISTRATION IN NIGERIA

A step-by-step guide to register a business Benets of Registering your business Business Registration Tips

By: Emma Ossy Isidahomen

Nigeria's position as 46 amongst 190 world best economies in 'the ease of doing business' ranking according to the latest World Bank annual ratings published in May 2019, as against 145 in 2017 and 146 in 2018 is an indication that that the 200 million populated West African country is gradually growing into a dominant force among great economies of the world. Although doing business is Nigeria can be challenging like it is obtainable in most countries where commercial activities are key to economic growth, there are many beneﬁts that the Nigerian advantage brings to many businesses. Entrepreneurship can also be very a rewarding experience in Nigeria especially when you get it right at the very start. Having got a business idea, have decided to do business in Nigeria, drawn your business plan, done your market

research, gotten a suitable location and raised some seed funding, the next step will be to register your business. As an investor, entrepreneur or both, this piece will help you get started with business registration, understanding some of its beneﬁts and being abreast of some quick business tips to help you get in the scheme of business in Nigeria's ever-growing investment space.

(ULTD). We will be looking at the ﬁrst 3 for the purpose of this article since they pertain to small and medium businesses. Steps for Business Name Registration 1.

Get on the CAC website (cac.gov.ng), search for availability of intended business name

Print, ﬁll and submit duly completed statutory application forms coupled with required documentations.

Business registrations are done with Nigeria's Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), the government agency charged with the responsibility in accordance with the Company and Allied Matters Act 1990, section 659 for businesses in operation in Nigeria. It is mandatory by law that every legitimate business be registered.

Submit completed statutory forms with two passport sized photographs of each applicant attached to the forms and submit at the CAC ofﬁce in Abuja or Lagos.

Pay necessary fees with the bank account provided by the CAC ofﬁce

Business registration in Nigeria has been simpliﬁed with the CAC website – cac.gov.ng. There you will ﬁnd information on registering a Business Name, Private Limited Company (LTD), Public Limited Company (PLC), Incorporated Trustees, Company Limited by Guarantee (LTD/GTE) and Unlimited Company

At the end of the process, you will be given a Certiﬁcate of Registration of Business Name.

Steps for Company Registration (Private & Public) 1.

Just like in the business name

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chartered secretary as the process is easy and straightforward as stated above.

registration, you will need to check for availability of proposed company name. Once chosen, go on to download and ﬁll the pre-registration form – CAC1.1 online. 2.

Pay the necessary ﬁling and Stamp duty fees

Then prepare to scan signed copy of your pre-registration documents as well as the following:

Where there is a process change, ask for guidance at the CAC ofﬁce

Clearly ﬁll your forms in capital letters to ensure your information is not misrepresented

Pick three unique names to avoid not having alternates when the most preferred is already taken.

If you are not sure of what to ﬁll in the forms, ask the CAC ofﬁcials for guidance, same applies for any of the steps above.

4. Now, upload the scanned documents onto the CAC portal (website).

5. Lastly, submit all original copies of the documents uploaded as well as the Certiﬁed True Copies (CTC) of same documents to the CAC ofﬁce.

It takes about a week for the Business Name Certiﬁcate to be ready. As for Limited Company, the certiﬁcate will be sent to you once it is ready.

Make photocopies of the ﬁlled forms before submitting them, you need to present the copies to locate your ﬁle.

Ÿ Ÿ

Form CAC1.1 Memorandum and Article of Association (MEMART) Ÿ Valid form of Identiﬁcation for Director(s)/Subscriber(s) and Secretary Ÿ Evidence of payment to CAC Ÿ

After successful registration, your business enterprise will be issued a Certiﬁcate of Incorporation. Business Registration Tips You do not need the services of an agent, legal practitioner, consultant or

Beneﬁts of Registering your Business/Company 1. Registering your business helps you secure your brand name just like a patent

so it becomes solely yours and no one else can take it. 2. Registration gives your business a lot of credibility especially in the eyes of those who want to do business with you, investors, loaning organisations and even regulators in your chosen line. 3. Business registration enables you to open corporate accounts with which comes lots of advantages such as ability to do huge amount of transactions, etc. 4. Non registration of a business pits you against the law of the land. Hence, it's a necessary legal process and entity that must be conducted within most jurisdictions. 5. Another great beneﬁt is that even if you're out of the picture, your business outlives you especially when you have the right structure in place. 6. One of the documents needed for seeking a business visa in the case of international business openings, is your certiﬁcate of business registration from your home country as proof of your claim. Most businesses ultimately hope to grow to growing beyond the shores of their country. And when that happens, your registration will be needed.

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S P E C I A L B U S I N E S S R E P O RT

Culinary Trends

that are Altering Africa's Eating Culture By: Emma Ossy Isidahomen

The African cuisine is known for its organically rich and varied meals which reflects her cultural diversity and natural way of living. But with influences from culinary delights from Africans migrating to North America, Europe and Asia, the continent is beginning to witness a revolution in the way, how and where Africans eat. Just as Ethiopian and Moroccan meals are already having influences with popular restaurants in urban hubs like London, New York, Paris, and Washington DC, so are celebrity chefs in Lagos, Addis Ababa, Cape Town, Harare, etc., swaying the discourse with their recipes on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. Here are some of the trending practices in the food sector that are influencing Africa:

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A RT I C L E

Plant-based food thrills Africa, home to natural foods and organic meals and had turned to more processed foods, is now reverting to laying more emphasis on fresh, whole and plant-based diets due to their health beneﬁts and lifestyle changes. This has also gone into the mainstream food outlets and restaurants as many African food combinations now contain vegetables, legumes, fruits, seeds, nuts and whole grains. Vegan diets are becoming more popular too just as it is booming globally. Even amongst major fast-food chains, vegetarian meals are commonplace in Shiro Restaurant & Bar Lagos where veggie burgers, snacks, etc. are becoming the mainstay. African food vendors are beginning to hear a yearning for organic inclinations, as there are more cravings for yoghurts, latte, mashed cauliﬂower, coconut milk, zucchini noodles, gluten-free crust pizza and the likes. Just like a Quartz Africa article by Nikita Singh puts it: “Veganism isn't new for Africans—it's a return to our roots.” Veganism isn't new for Africans—it's a return to our roots – Quartz Africa Trendy Food Packs 'on the go' African food vendors and consumers are beginning to buy into the 'going green' appeal with special concerns for its environment with its food packaging. Though single-use plastics are still in use, there seem to be huge strides in attaining the eco-friendly goal as many notable restaurants and cafes have taken plastic bottles, straws, cutlery, etc, completely off the menu. One of such is Nigeria's Eko Hotels & Suites, Lagos where staff and management are trained to adhere strictly to eco-friendly practices. Also, supermarket chains are ditching plastic carrier bags for more organic options. While some have non-plastic sections, others have completely let go of it entirely. Two of South Africa's top supermarkets, Woolworths and Pick n' Pay agreed to do more to curb plastic pollution starting with single-use items such as shopping packets and straws with a collective goal to reach 100% recycling of its wastes by 2022.

Foodstuff Halls & Hubs Asides from the traditional food markets, there is a growing foodstuff market that provides a direct link between local farmers and consumers. They are known as food hubs, halls and stalls. In recent times, smalltime African farmers are able to survive as they are able to overcome their worst challenges of getting their produces into the consuming hands via these food stalls; making foodstuffs available and more affordable. Practically in most African neighbourhoods and large supermarkets, farm produces are readily displayed and available for the buying. One of such places is the Oranjezicht City Farmers Market, Cape Town. The internet is also not left out in the fray as small, medium and large-scale food outlets are up for business delivering groceries to locations of choices. These have made the African food industry more diverse in nature. Some of these popular online grocery stores are food.jumia.com, smemarkethub.com, foodhub.ng, supermart.ng, etc. Celebrity Chef Influences A celebrity chef is a kitchen chef who has become a media personality, an influencer or popular person. They usually become celebrities by doing demonstrations and offering cookery advice via the TV, Social Media, radio or in printed publications. African chefs are having a fair share of cuisine influences in recent times. Culinary brands and businesses are leveraging on their expertise and popularities to drive their narratives of food recipes, seasoning techniques and event promotions via advertisements, etc. More Appealing Desserts & Killer Combos Africa is taking tips from all around the world and making more mouth watery desserts. Ever tried the malva pudding chocolate? It is a traditional South African dessert so moist, rich, and chocolatey. According to food lover, cookbookcollector and blogger, Imma of Immaculate Bites, what sets this dessert apart is its caramelised exterior and spongy interior when baked. Then it is soaked in a warm butter sauce and served with whipped cream or ice cream. There are other appealing natural African food combos that are undeniably worth

trying out. One of such is the ancient Nigerian rainy-season food combination of boiled/roasted corn with heated pear (ube). The Rise of Ugly food In a research conducted by WWF-SA in 2017, it is estimated that in South Africa, 10 million tonnes of food goes to waste on a yearly basis. These losses are 44 per cent of fruit and vegetables. Dina Aburmishan, a nutritionist with the World Food Programme (WFP) on Exposure Africa, reveals that each day about 75 metric tons of vegetables from Kenyan farms are denied entry into overseas markets because they are either too long, oddly shaped, shorter than the desired packaging size or simply blemished, but still impeccably nutritious and fit for consumption. With the support of the Australian Government and WFP's Innovation Fund, WFP has been running a pilot using these 'unacceptable' vegetables in Kenyan school meals programme to provide more nutritious meals for disadvantaged children living in the slums of Nairobi. Attitudes seem to be changing quickly too in the African food space on 'ugly veg' as more and more popular restaurants are adding them to their menus. African food companies are also taking on the fight for wasted food by sharing their knowledge and resources in finding innovative ways on how to stop food wastages, end hunger, adopt healthy living and maintain nutritious and sustainable diets, especially for indigent communities. More Adventurous Recipes African recipes are known for their spicy and intense flavours. With influences from Asia, America, Europe and other continents of the world, the once traditional-laden preparation methods of seasoning, cooking, grilling and even spicing are evolving. From Morocco in North Africa with its iconic tagines to traditional koeksisters, the sticky-sweet doughnuts from South Africa and karanga - the simple Kenyan beef stew, Africa seem to be on a continuous exploratory drive for the more daring, more adventurous and satisfying styles of meal preparation.

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ARTICLE

COOKING PURPOSE:

WITH

STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE ON HOW TO MAKE MONEY AS A FOOD BLOGGER By: Victor Oluwole

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ARTICLE

Do you want to start a food blog and make money from your recipes? Starting a new food blog can be challenging for beginners, especially when you have no idea where to begin. Having helped over 100+ businesses start their own blogs, we (Business Elites Africa) are often asked how to start a food blog and successfully earn money from it. In this step by step guide, we will show you how to start a food blog and make money from your recipes without any technical skills.

Step 1: Publish posts with unique and high-quality content. Why should people visit your food? Because you provide unique and highquality content. This is one of the main issues to think about when starting a food blog. Try to discover what content will generate a lot of traffic to your blog and convert leads. It is also very important to define your audience i.e. Who are you writing for? Keep the answers to these question in mind when starting your food blog. You can also include a call-to-action on some of your posts so people can easily ask for more information or can become your customer. Step 2: Syndicate your post. If blogging was a marathon, syndicating your blog posts will be the last hundred yards. Some bloggers who just started usually wonder why it takes so long to get any traffic. My advice will be to stop wondering and start syndicating your blog posts. Syndication is the process in which you post your content on other websites and channels with proper contribution to you as the owner. Never skip this step because it will immediately result in more visitors and most likely valuable backlinks. 73

Backlinks are very important for higher ranking in search engines. There are many sites where you could post your content; think of social media platforms like Facebook, Google Plus, and Twitter.

by sending messages and getting personal. Let them know who you are, what you like, what you doing, and most of all how you can help them. If not, you will fail to get serious trafﬁc and prospects. One good advice: never send out responder messages.

Step 3: Share related stories Blogging doesn't always have to be about you, instead, you can pay attention to what other people do and share their posts. You can syndicate these posts the same way as you do with your own. The good thing is that it doesn't take you any time to create them, but it's very important to always mention the source. You can also search for other people's stories or videos related to food and integrate them into your own blog post. Search for stories that are starting to get viral and popular especially when you're just starting with your food blog and still building up your own name. It can be a good strategy to focus on other people's successes and beneﬁt from it. Step 4: Build a relationship with your audience Never forget to build a relationship with your audience. Your followers want to be able to identify themselves with you. You must actively build a relationship with them

Step 5: Video marketing for your food blog Pictures say more than words, therefore, video is a very powerful instrument to generate trafﬁc to your blog and make money. It gives extra value to your blog and it helps to create a better relationship with your audience. For example, by making a personal video introduction, you give your audience the opportunity to get to know you better. Another interesting way to integrate videos to your blog is by creating “How to videos”. Think of showing how you prepare some of your favourite dishes. You can also use videos to respond to frequently asked questions (FAQ's) from followers. Never use video to directly tell people to buy your products. Instead, be creative and inspire them by being authentic, honest and giving them what they are looking for.

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YOUTREPRENEUR

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES IN AFRICA’S

FOOD INDUSTRY

By: Victor Oluwole

f you are considering setting up a small business in the food industry in Africa, then you are looking in the right direction, as this industry offers myriad of opportunities for small investments. Food demands from African consumers is still very high, but competition in every segment of this industry is also strong, especially in developed cities. Although the industry remains competitive, a food business idea that is unique with different approach is the key to breaking even. With a focus on food concepts that have a ready market, affordable and do not require signiﬁcant start-up capital, that is it! So whatever your goals, motivation, or interest in the industry are, here are an array of options to get you started.

1. Buffet Restaurant

2. Food Processing

3. Rice Farming

In this type of commerce, consumers are particularly attracted by the variety of dishes, including snacks, decent meals, and low-cost desserts. The main consumers of this type of business are families. A good location and an appropriate marketing strategy can make a difference for your business.

Do you have the capital to invest in machinery and structures? Then you can start a food processing factory. In fact, there is no limit to what foods can be processed and packaged. It's up to you to decide. You can turn palm seeds into palm oil, cassava, yam, corn, millet into ﬂour, cocoa into beverages, raw cow's milk into reﬁned milk, fresh tomatoes into canned tomatoes, and so on.

Rice remains the most consumed staple food in Africa, and billions of dollars go into importation of Rice because local farmers are not able to meet the demand due to insufﬁcient funding and limited knowledge. You do not need a huge capital or farmland to get into farming. If you have a small piece of land in your yard, you can still plant some crops in small or

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YOUTREPRENEUR

vertical containers to get the most out of your space. 4. Making of Fruit Juice You will need a good juicer, fruits, a refrigerator, tumblers, and a counter to display the fruits in your juice shop. You can also get good quality fruit directly from wholesale sellers at a reasonable price. 5. Packaged Drinking Water As the quality of portable water decreases very rapidly, people become heavily dependent on packaged drinking water. Although this business is capital intensive, it is worth investing in, especially if you can manage it professionally. 6. Bakery & Confectionery

markets from event planners. For this type of business, you do not need a workplace and you can operate from home easily. Just market yourself at a small level in the beginning and customers will contact you for your services. Once you have enough funds, expand your workforce and services.

store. If you can get organic food properly, it's the best business to start from home. However, fresh fruits and vegetables are extremely perishable foods, so you will have to be very careful about this. You will also have to be careful in good packaging and on-time delivery.

8. Mobile Kitchen

11. Ofﬁce Food Delivery Business

The mobile kitchen sector differs from normal restaurants in two major ways. One is you are moving and you don't have a retail location. Second is you are going to the customers. From food truck, you can sell frozen and packaged items like ice cream, soft drinks, sweets, and snacks or you can go for cooked items with a speciﬁc menu. A person having minimum experience in the foodservice industry can initiate this venture in the city area.

In this fast life, it is not possible for everyone to cook and bring food to their ofﬁce. Working class people have lunch or dinner at the canteen or take food delivery services. In this business idea, you just need to cook good quality food and deliver it to different ofﬁces from where you received the orders. You do not have to deliver the food yourself, you can hire help for the same thing. 12. Food Blogging

A bakery business can be started in two ways. You can establish a bakery with a retail outlet and sell fresh baked goods at your store. Alternatively, you can establish a large-scale bakery unit and sell the product to retailers. You can also specialise in cakes such as wedding cakes, birthday cakes, engagement cakes and many other models that will encourage consumers to patronise you.

9. Frozen Foods Not everybody likes going through the stress of killing and preparing animals for consumption. Due to the change in our lifestyle, we get very less time to prepare and cook food. This is why Frozen food is quickly gaining demand in the world market. There are lots of foods that you can sell frozen. They include chicken, meat, ice creams, yoghurt, etc.

7. Catering Services 10. Online Organic Store Catering is a popular activity in the food industry. For all small and large gatherings and meetings, we always look for a catering service. Apart from this, you will also get

Demand for organic products is increasing very rapidly. And an organic online store eliminates the costs of renting a physical

Finally, you can also try to blog food products, especially when you do not have the capital to invest in the business ideas listed above. Your blog may focus on new ways to prepare popular African cuisines, or come up with an innovative spicy dish and see your blog trafﬁc surge. The choice is yours. You can make money with your blog by selling advertising space, selling your own products, or selling other people's products. So, whatever capital you have, you can still tap into the food industry as a producer, salesperson or teacher.

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INTERMEZO

“Try not to become a man of success, but rather a man of value.”

2 “Don't scratch your head saying there is no ﬁnancing. With what you have, what can you do to achieve your goal? Investors like people who have taken that initiative.”

“In terms of expansion, I strongly believe in organic growth as there is nothing more motivating or satisfying… The biggest lesson I've learned is to dream big, but start small.”

7 “The best way to predict the future is to create it.”

3 “If you don't have your own skin in the game, you will never have accountability… Once you have your own money on the table, you are just more careful. So if you are going to start your own business, put your own money down.”

8 “Rule No. 1: Never lose money; rule No. 2: Don't forget rule No. 1.”

9 4

“It's more effective to do something valuable than to hope a logo or name will say it for you.”

“What do you need to start a business? Three simple things: know your product better than anyone. Know your customer, and have a burning desire to succeed.”

5 “Success is not a science, you don't have to be a Rhodes Scholar – it's based upon commitment and desires!”

10 “Most people fail in science because they talk themselves out of doing the experiment. Ideas are a dime a dozen. What makes the difference is the execution of the idea.”

Earl G. Graves, Sr.

Jay-Z

Jitesh Ladwa CEO, Mkoba Private Equity

Jason Cohen

Ugandan Alpesh Patel Founder of Mi-Fone

Oprah Winfrey

Ismail Ahmed Founder and CEO, WorldRemit

Warren Buffett CEO of Berkshire Hathaway

Dave Thomas Wendy's founder

Mike Pero Mike Pero Mortgages

Craig Venter

Duncan Muchangi Managing Director, Hellofood Kenya

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INTERMEZO

“Don't imagine that just because you hear fantastic stories about people who drop out of school and make a fortune, and do things the easy way, that this is typical. It is far from typical. If you work hard, even if you don't get what you are aiming for, you will get something. You will never be empty-handed. And the experience of working hard opens up so many doors because in the process you're educating yourself, you are learning about yourself, you are learning about other people, you are meeting people, and people can see your work and your passion – and it will lead to something.”

“When assessing an SME for finance, the primary focus is first on the nature of the entrepreneur. Are they involved in all aspects of their business and do they possess the commitment and drive to make their business a success? Next, we look at the business' chances of success. We define success as the business' ability to generate a profit year on year. Bearing this in mind, we ask entrepreneurs to approach us with a business plan that illustrates how they intend to grow.”

16 “The intense media coverage of the problems in developed economies (better called 'stagnant economies' now) continues to mask the potential of the rest of the world. The irony is that 90% of the media's 24/7 coverage is concerned with the West, whereas 90% of the opportunity is in emerging markets.”

12 “Be courageous with your ideas and passionate about your business. The opportunities for entrepreneurs in Africa have never been bigger. The explosion of mobile money services is but one example, and you can already see the knock-on effects this is having on companies with the courageous ideas and the right leadership.”

17 "Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you."

18 "Belief in oneself and knowing who you are, I mean, that's the foundation for everything great."

13 “If you want to be successful be ready to put in hard work. Don't wait for traditional help or inspiration from the West. Look for solutions to the challenges in your country. You know more about your market than any person sitting in London. So mobilise the talent, knowledge and resources here to build successful local enterprises.”

14 “Hard work cannot be compromised in business and entrepreneurship. Be willing to take risks, innovate, and most importantly learn fast. If you have an idea, start now and do something every day towards fulﬁlling your goal.”

19 I built a conglomerate and emerged the richest black man in the world in 2008 but it didn't happen overnight. It took me 30 years to get to where I am today. Youths of today aspire to be like me but they want to achieve it overnight. It's not going to work. To build a successful business, you must start small and dream big. In the journey of entrepreneurship, tenacity of purpose is supreme."

20 "Hold on to your dreams of a better life and stay committed to striving to realize it."

Heshan de Silva Dr Amy Jadesimi Stephen Jennings Founder and CEO of the Managing Director CEO, Renaissance Capital De Silva Group in Kenya Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics Bas

Aliko Dangote

Rishi Khubchandani GM, GroFin (Kenya)

Stephen Saad Aspen Pharmacare, South Africa

Peter Drucker Management Consultant and Author

Zainab Ashadu Founder of Zashadu Bags in Nigeria.

Albert Einstein Theoretical Physicist w w w. b u s i n e s s e l i t e s a f r i c a . c o m

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