Hello!! Hope you had a beautiful weekend, this week we feature a special entrepreneur Oluwayemisi.

Oluwayemisi and her team wearing B&G apron

Lets meet you

I am Oluwayemisi Ladipo-Ajayi, a young lady with a passion for business. I own Yelashcakes and Confectionaries. It started out of love and passion for creating delicious baked goodies. We specialize in delicious cakes and cupcakes for every occasion which includes specialty cakes, birthday cakes, graduation cakes, christenings, and wedding cakes along with a number of scrumptious pastries and delicacies that are sure to WOW your taste buds. We bake with love and deliver with care.

What makes you a proud African?

My culture and my colour makes me a proud African.

What is your favorite city in Africa (you may not have visited it yet!)

Not visited yet but I would love to visit Tunis and Cape Town.

Tunis                                                                 Cape Town

Who is your African Icon? (Aside Nelson Mandela)

                                                                                 Mrs. Folorunso Alakija

Describe your Africa in 10 years?

My Africa in 10years is peaceful

How would you colour Africa?

Pink represents sweetness and calmness. I will colour Africa pink because I see a calm and peaceful Africa, not just for me but for my generations to come.

Which B&G product(s) do you like the most & what makes it/ them unique?

I like the Apron. Its unique because of the infusion of the Ankara material. 

You may  follow Yelash cakes on Instagram @yelashcakes,

Facebook:Yelashcakes and Confectionaries

Website www.yelashcakes.com

#ColourMyAfrica is proudly powered by Belle&Grace

www.belleandgrace.com

 : @BelleandGraceAfrica

 :@belleandgraceaf

 : Belle & Grace

We will love to hear  from you. Please leave a comment.

Beautiful weekend!!

We hope you truly had a beautiful one, its a special weekend for us at B&G as we launch our new double sided pocket square!!! Now you can have two pocket squares in one!

In line with our launch we feature a great young man Femi Taiwo

Introduce yourself (Let’s meet you)

Well, I am Femi Taiwo, majority of my friends and acquaintances call me F.T.  I like to think that the acronym F.T, which also means Facilitating Transformation, summarises who I am, what I do, and all I hope to do.

Hence, I facilitate the transformation of ideas to reality by working with entrepreneurs, social entrepreneurs and change makers on strategies to move their ventures and ideas to fruition. I also work to facilitate the transformation of individuals (teens and youths) into leaders and best version of themselves through the design and delivery of learning and development programs, and my speaking and coaching engagements.

I am a trained innovation manager, and presently the Executive Director of H.O.P.E (Helping Other People Excel) – a non-profit working to raise change agents for Africa.

What makes you a proud African?

What makes me a proud African are a special breed of Africans- those who have become their best, give their best, and are becoming their best for the benefit of Africa and Africans. I am extremely excited when I see entrepreneurs, social entrepreneurs and other individuals in any sector excel in their assignments and in character. Africa needs more good examples.

How would you colour Africa? List the colour(s) and what it/they represent?

Hmm! I will rather colour Africans than colour Africa. Anyway, I will use a lot of orange to depict vibrancy and innovativeness. A lot of green will go a long way to show fruitfulness and growth and light blue definitely to depict trust, calmness, peace and integrity.

What is your best African brand/ business and why?

Tough one! I will go with House of Tara. It is innovative, socially responsible, an industry leader in Africa, excellently managed, and a truly African brand.

Describe your desired Africa in 10 years?

I would love to see an Africa fulfilling its true potential. An African where poverty, disease, and corruption is scarce. But for this to be, we definitely need an Africa where all Africans locally and in diaspora are all working to build Africa every way they can.

Who is your most respected African business leader and why?

Tougher one! I think I will go with a duo- Tayo Aderinokun of blessed memories and Fola Adeola. As co-founders of GTBank, they were exceptional in all regards.  They literally built an ethical, extremely innovative, consistent, excellent, and profitable bank from scratch. In 2007, GTB became the first Nigerian bank to issue a Eurobond, and the first Nigerian company and African bank to be listed on the London Stock Exchange. Furthermore, taking the true meaning of leadership into consideration, I admire the duo because of their diverse efforts to raise leaders through Fate Foundation, Day Waterman /college and other endeavours.

What is/are your best B&G product(s) and why?
While I am a lover of pocket squares and particularly the Belle and Grace’s two-sided pocket squares, I think my best B&G product are the neckpieces for ladies. Those neckpieces, when worn with a lovely gown, can make a guy get down on his knees and propose lol!

From the B&G team: Congratulations to Nigeria on the successful transition to a new government and congratulations to Africans on the new African Development Bank President; Akinwunmi Adesina.

God bless Africa!!

#ColourMyAfrica is proudly powered by Belle&Grace

www.belleandgrace.com

 : @BelleandGraceAfrica

 :@belleandgraceaf

 : Belle & Grace

Thank you for reading, we will love to hear from you. Cheers.

Beautiful evening, we hope your weekend was awesome!! This week we feature a gracious lady! Enjoy the read.

My name is Titilayo Oke. I enjoy travelling to new places and encountering different cultures and  I am a lawyer☺

• What makes you a proud African?

Its diverse culture, the enormous resources and the beauty of its landscape and scenery – it is nature in the most unadulterated form.

Also, the tenacity and resilience of the African people is admirable.

• What is your favorite city in Africa 

 Capetown – The mountains, the deep blue sea, the peace and calm of the city just does it for me.

• Who is your African Icon? (Aside Nelson Mandela)

                                                          Desmond Tutu

• Describe your Africa in 10 years?

A more educated and enlightened Africa with an even  distribution (to the extent possible) of its wealth.

• How would you color Africa?

Yellow & Orange –I love bright colours and how they bring things to life in a vibrant way. In colouring Africa, I will have splashes of these colours everywhere and watch how the entire continent radiates with joy and warmth. Whew! that would be something to look out for.

• Which B&G product(s) do you like the most & what makes it/ them unique?

The neck piece – the combination of different colours and its versatility i.e. how it can be worn in different ways to achieve various looks.

#ColourMyAfrica is proudly powered by Belle&Grace

www.belleandgrace.com

 : @BelleandGraceAfrica

 :@belleandgraceaf

 : Belle & Grace

Thank you for reading please leave a comment.

Have a great week! Happy Democracy week Nigeria and fruitful meeting to the African Development Bank team.

Beautiful day!

WOW!! Its midweek already.

Let’s reverse a little bit….. Trust you had a great weekend, ours was beautifully busy as most of it was spent equipping ourselves at Live your Dream Africa, it was a great one for us! Thumbs up to the team and impactful speakers!!

At Belle&Grace, promoting Africa’s beauty is our dream and we hope to always live it!!

This week on ColourMyAfrica, we will be featuring a beautiful client Bade.

I am Oyebade Aboderin, a firm believer in Jesus Christ and a follower of His teachings. I love to learn about my culture and other cultures. At the moment I am studying on the South Korean culture and learning their language,  this has also encouraged me to study the Chinese and Japanese cultures as well.

What makes you a proud African?

I believe God has blessed the continent  with so much… ranging from natural resources,  lovely weather, great landscape,  intelligent people and most especially God-fearing people.  I am so proud of these and I believe the world at large knows this truth.

What is your favourite city in Africa?

Hmm,  never really gave that a thought but I would choose Zanzibar,  Tanzania.

Describe your Africa in 10 years?

I would love to see Africa as a place with great tourist centers, higher standard of living across the continent not just a minority,  better and more hospitals that are easily accessible.

How would you colour Africa?

Green for our great landscapes, White for peace and  Gold for our untapped resources and   opportunities

Which B&G product do you like the most & what makes it unique?

The neckpieces are really unique and lovely. Unlike any others I have seen.

P.S: Are you wondering who the next president of African Development Bank (ADB) will be??        Well whoever gets the role, there is a lot of work to be done!!

#ColourMyAfrica is proudly powered by Belle&Grace

www.belleandgrace.com

 : @BelleandGraceAfrica

 :@belleandgraceaf

 : Belle & Grace

Thank you for reading please leave a comment.

Hello! Trust you had a great weekend!

This week we  will simply be sharing some lessons learnt within the three years of our existence, a wise person once said experience is the best teacher and a wiser person said other people’s experience is a less expensive way to learn, so we hope you learn from this.

Let’s use the 5 P’s, its not the regular 5P’s of marketing, but 5P’s of business management learnt by B&G thus far.

Partnerships: There are many partnership opportunities and enormous benefits in businesses synergizing. At B&G,  we are learning to work with other organisations who have similar visions as our organisation. Earlier we partnered with one towards an exhibition hence paid half the price of the exhibition space, talk about cost savings! Just recently we partnered with Bellafricana ( a market place for afrocentric products)  and now stock our products on their site. We encourage you to look for good opportunities in partnerships 

Power of Social Media: Advertisement has never been so cheap with the rise of various social media platforms; facebook, twitter, instagram, linked in,  BB messenger amongst many others. It is a medium to reach thousands without paying a single dime (or little if you want to reach more ) hence marketing cost can be close to zero. A start-up may not be able to afford a website but certainly has no reason not to be on social media platforms especially when the founders are there. B&G has connected with people across the globe using our social media platforms. So what are you waiting for, open yours now and grow it!

                                                               Our beautiful instagram page @belleandgraceafrica

Pleasure in listening to clients: YES, pleasure not pain in listening to clients, we must be ready to listen to the complaints and suggestions of our clients.  We remember a particular client that wanted the design in a certain way, yes we were stressed or should we say “stretched” but guess what? Her design became a most sought after design for us. Starts ups like mine and yours must take pleasure in learning from our clients.

Priority on local resources: Most times, we want to source all materials abroad, but pause and check your local environment. I remember when we needed to brand our products with B&G labels, we were researching on companies in China that we could get it from. Guess what? We got it from a printing press that was in my friend’s house in Ebute Metta, Lagos and our boxes too are made in Nigeria. Many times, we miss out on the local resources while focusing on the same quality exported ones.

Persistence: So honestly when I started this I wasn’t sure what the last P will be, but its PERSISTENCE. How important is Persistence for us? Extremely important!!! because growing a business is a long process which definitely requires patience and consistency. We can’t afford to give up on our business, YES we are allowed to fail but NEVER allowed to stay down! At B&G, we had a product that may be termed a failure but this is B&G with more products now. Don’t ever give up!

Thank you for reading, this is perhaps one of our longest blog posts, we hope you learnt from it!!

We want to hear from you so please drop a comment or send a mail to esther@belleandgrace.com

www.belleandgrace.com

 : @BelleandGraceAfrica

 :@belleandgraceaf

 : Belle & Grace

Beautiful new month!!

Last week was great for us as we celebrated our third anniversary!!! B&G is growing gracefully!!!!

In the growth process, we recognise the need to partner with other afrocentric(African focused) organisations and Bellafricana is an ideal choice!

So who is Bellafricana?

Bellafricana is a marketplace for Afrocentric  and handmade products. Bellafricana promotes local content by expressing the beauty of Africa in various products and by promoting local artisans, creatives and talents.It was founded by Bukky Bello, an African textile and product expert.

We met with Bukky Bello and YES she is a very passionate and lovely lady!!!

We look forward to a fruitful partnership with the Bellafricana team!!!

Please read our exclusive interview on Bellafricana:

http://digest.bellafricana.com/meet-the-founder-of-belle-grace-exclusive-interview/

Check out our store on Bellafricana too:

http://bellafricana.com/shop/belle-grace/

www.belleandgrace.com

 : @BelleandGraceAfrica

 :@belleandgraceaf

 : Belle & Grace

Thank you for reading all, have a BELLE & GRACEFUL week. We appreciate you. Please leave a comment:

Beautiful day all!!!

Last week was awesome for us, as we prepared for the launch of our first male product, the B&G pocket square!!!! In light of this we are featuring our first male client on the blog. He is a mentor and a great believer of our vision!!

Let’s meet Steve Harris

“I’m Steve Harris, a Life & Business Strategist, Management Consultant, Motivational Speaker and Author. I’m married to my ‘forever fiancée’,Imma and together, we have a beautiful daughter.”

What makes you a proud African?

I’m proud to be African, because we are the epitome of the spirit of enterprise, we’re hard working and we never back down.

How would you colour Africa?

I think my Africa would be green, representing the fertility and productivity of the continent and blue, representing peace

Describe your Africa in 10 years?

The most productive continent, a global standard for values, education, enterprise and governance

What is your best African brand?

                                                         They operate with integrity and global excellence

Who is your most respected African business leader ?

Mo Ibrahim, he’s used his business to determine and influence governance and leadership standards in Africa

Where does fashion meet business and how do they complement each other?

People buy into you before they buy into your business. Fashion makes the buying process easier

How much do you love our new pocket square? 

It’s awesome! Way to go! I totally recommend it

Check for our pocket square designs: http://belleandgrace.com/products.php?pid=5 and make your orders now.

Thank you.

Join us next week as we feature another passionate client.

We believe in ONE Africa hence condemn the Xenophobic attack in South Africa,  a peaceful South Africa we see this new week!!

#ColourMyAfrica is proudly powered by Belle&Grace

www.belleandgrace.com

 : @BelleandGraceAfrica

 :@belleandgraceaf

 : Belle & Grace

Thank you for reading.

We want to hear from you, please leave a comment below.

Beautiful weekend!

This week we will be featuring  a wonderful couple Mr&Mrs Oludemi

Mrs Oludemi was our first client as she was the first person that ordered our apron when we started almost 3 years ago. We are proud to be a part of their home and we deeply appreciate them!

Meet Mr & Mrs Oludemi

What makes you proud Africans?

Our culture and food!

What is your favourite city in Africa?

                                         Lagos, Nigeria

Who is your African Icon?

 Mrs. Tolani Olanlokun…she’s caring, hardworking, God-fearing and not only a mother she is also a friend.

Describe your Africa in 10 years?

We see a war-free, suffering-free, disease-free with all nations having the basic amenities readily available.

How would you colour Africa?

                           Simply Green…it represents Nature, Growth and Fertility.

Which B&G product do you like the most & what makes it unique?

Our Mr & Mrs E Apron

Thank you.

Join us next week as we feature another passionate client.

We celebrate with Nigeria on the peaceful conduction of her elections. We see a GREAT Nigeria

#ColourMyAfrica is proudly powered by Belle&Grace

www.belleandgrace.com

 : @BelleandGraceAfrica

 :@belleandgraceaf

 : Belle & Grace

Thank you for reading.

We want to hear from you, please leave a comment below.

Happy Easter!!!

Welcome to this week’s edition of #ColourMyAfrica

This week we will be featuring our beautiful client Abimbola!

Abimbola Kudirat Alabi is a legal practitioner by profession, a music enthusiast, a book addict and a lover of Christ Jesus.

She enjoys hanging out with family and friends but a quiet lay-in with an interesting book is a perfect day for her. She is  an introvert with little sparks of excitement!! ☺

What makes you a proud African?

I am a proud African because I believe in Africa and in its possibilities. Our siblings at home and in the diaspora have indeed shown our contribution to world development and the potential to achieve much more given the right environment.

What is your favourite city in Africa?

Nairobi, Kenya

Who is your African Icon? (Aside Nelson Mandela)

Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola

A true representation of what we hope Nigeria will become (someone accepted by all tribes)

Describe your Africa in 10 years?

I see a tourist and economic attraction where education, technological inventions and agricultural enhancement will be our priorities. A continent less dependent on other nations for its growth and sustenance. A continent more aware of its power and in full realization of its potentials.

How would you colour Africa?

Clay: represents the colour of our skin  and soil

Green: our luscious plants and agriculture in Africa

Gold: the abundance of natural minerals and our untapped wealth;

Purple: serves as a reminder to all Africans that we are and will always be royalty.

Which B&G product do you like the most & what makes it unique?

The aprons, the ankara trimmings gives the product a nice and versatile touch.

Join us next week as we feature another passionate client.

We commensurate with the friends and family of the victims of Garissa University attack, we see a peaceful Kenya arising.

#ColourMyAfrica is proudly powered by Belle&Grace

 : @BelleandGraceAfrica

 :@belleandgraceaf

 : Belle & Grace

Thank you for reading

We want to hear from you, please leave a comment below.