One at a Time

With the 1st quarter of the year done and dusted, it\’s always a good idea to check progress on the goals we have set ourselves for the year.  Top of the list for African Mamas Crafts was finishing annual financial statements and submitting returns at SARS and CIPC.  As it turns out, completing the documentation proved easier than filing returns as we had a number of visits before we were successful.  But one visit at a time we were making progress and getting closer to our goal.  Mark Batterson in his book – Chase the Lion – says \”you get into shape one workout at a time, you get out of debt one payment at a time and you get your graduate degree one class at a time.\” Persistence pays.

GEC2017 – Startups rising!

The Global Entrepreneurship Congress held in JHB on the 14-16th March was phenomenal.  Although disappointed that we couldn\’t exhibit, it was actually better that we attended as delegates as we came away with so much more.  For me, Daniel Isenberg (@danisen) on increasing the economic prosperity of regions through scaling up small and medium enterprises was the most impactful.  He disproves the notion that startups are engine of growth, stating that scale-ups are; and that as entrepreneurs we must be obsessive about growth.  With this in mind @African_mamas has begun its growth trajectory by reviewing our processes, systems and resources.

In the picture above – (top left) Telephone Wire Bowl and plates (right) – branded wall display with decorative wire baskets and stand with beaded jewellery (bottom left) – Beaded Jewellery display. Tablecloth and overlay branding done by @We_R_Royalty.

Buy Local Summit

The Proudly South African Buy Local Summit on the 3rd-4th April provided yet another opportunity for us to showcase our beautiful handcrafted beaded jewellery and decorative wire baskets (see pic above).  As part of our range this year, we also introduced smaller telephone wire bowls/plates.  Due to their size, these are proving popular not only as gifts for tourists at the Neighbourgoods Market where we sell, but are also loved by locals for filling up with snacks like biltong, chocolates and sweets.  See how you can order these lovely new additions on our website at http://www.africanmamascrafts.co.za/product-category/telephone-wire-bowlsplates/.  For the Summit this time round, we were also more conscious of making our brand visible and branded our display wall, tablecloths and overlays.

Visits with crafters

Visits to and meetings with our crafters is always high on our priority list as it helps us to build and sustain relationships.  With Limpopo and KZN visits complete, we are looking forward to going to the Eastern Cape later in the year.  If you missed it, read our article and meet our crafters from Limpopo in our last edition – www.africanmamascrafts.co.za/going-leaner-go/

Till next month,

Goodbye, Salani Kahle & Totsiens,

Nomaswazi Tinus
Founder & Director
African Mamas Crafts