In this motivational interview we meet Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah who is the phenomenal co-founder of Ghana based Fashion label Maksi.
Nana works full-time and runs this fashion business with her sister and shares her story with us in this week's profile - be prepared to be inspired.
Please tell us what is a typical business
day for you?
I don’t have a typical business day. It really
depends on where I am, and what is going on. for example, I will be
visiting AWDF’s grantee partners in Abuja as part of our site visit team. The African
Women's Development Fund (AWDF) is a Pan-African grant maker based in Ghana,
and I work with the fund as a Communications Specialist. On other days when I
am in the office I get to work at about 10am and usually leave around 8pm. I
co-own a fashion label MAKSI with my sister so sometimes I will pick up clothes
from our production unit before I go to work, or schedule a work meeting over
drinks when I’m done in the office. I’m a writer and also working on a
collection of short stories, so if I have no meetings scheduled after work I
try and make time to write.
What made you start the business and how did you
get started?
MAKSI started because I wanted to encourage my
sister to become an entrepreneur at a much earlier age than I had. For several
years I have balanced running a business with either a full time job or study,
and often times done all three at the same time. One of my learning lessons has
been that if you want to run your own business you should start early so you
have enough time to learn from your failures.
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| Mbalyi model, make up artist and stylist wearing Maksi |
What would you say has been your greatest
accomplishment in the business world to date?
I think in a climate like Ghana where there is
really no existent support for businesses, having a business that is over 3
years old, and is now a recognised leader amongst contemporary fashion
businesses is an achievement on its own. I am also proud of MAKSI’s business
reputation, we have worked with prestigious fabric companies like VLISCO, and
we’ve been featured in a range of media locally and internationally including ARISE
magazine, New African Woman magazine and Africa Magic on DSTV.
What has been your biggest
challenge in business so far?
Working for MAKSI part-time has been
the biggest challenge. MAKSI definitely needs more of my time.
What are your future plans for the
business?
I want to continue growing and
developing MAKSI as a brand. We already have a small accessories range, which
we are currently expanding. At the moment we have 2 stockists in Accra
(Prestige Boutique in Osu and WINGLOW in East Legon), and will soon be stocked
at a third stockist in Accra. I see MAKSI as an international brand. People all
over the world can purchase MAKSI at the moment from our online stockist www.yougora.com
but what I would really like is for MAKSI to have its own chain of shops in
Accra, Kampala, Nairobi, Johannesburg, Lagos…
If you had to do it all over
again, what would you do differently?
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| Mbalyi model, make up artist and stylist wearing Maksi |
I would have started my own business
when I turned 18.
Why is it so important to inspire
young women in particular to follow their dreams?
It’s especially important because
society still tries to limit women, which makes it even more important for those
of us who are passionate about women achieving their goals to to inspire young
women. And this can be done in so many ways starting from living your best
possible life, which is inevitably an inspiration to others.
What advice would you give to
somebody who wants to start a business in your industry?
I would say, think of how you can be
different from everyone else. What’s going to be special about your fashion
business? What’s going to be your niche? How committed are you to your
business? Think of who can be in your support team. Your support team can
include a business partner, a financial advisor, a supportive friend, a strong
sales team etc.
What or who inspires you in business
and why?
I’m inspired by Helena Stephens, a
Ghanaian business woman who started off running a small business whilst working
as a civil servant and today has a telecommunications distribution business, an
LPG business, a hotel, is a Unilever distributor, and probably owns other
businesses that I do not even know of.
What is your favourite inspirational quote?
“If you think you can
do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right.” Henry Ford
Contact details:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MAKSIClothing
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| Mbalyi model, make up artist and stylist wearing Maksi |
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