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Meet Cherae Robinson and Taffi Woolward; Two of The Top 10 Finalists for the She Leads Africa Competition.

by Anie Akpe

Meet Cherae Robinson and Taffi Woolward; Two of The Top 10 Finalists for the She Leads Africa Competition.

She Leads Africa recently announced the Top 10 Finalists female entrepreneurs who were selected to pitch their entrepreneurial ideas come September 20th, in Lagos, Nigeria. Today, Innov8tiv brings you two of the 10 finalist participating in this competition.

The following is our interview of Cherae Robinson and Taffi Woolward. Robinson is based in New York, USA and she will be pitching for Rare Customs which she intends to use to connect SME’s to emerging African tourism and investment trends. Woolward is based in Lagos, Nigeria and she will be pitching for Thandos, which is a platform seeking to empower aspiring African artists to design women’s fashion footwear that is comfortable, convenient and affordable.

Why did you enter this competition?

I entered this competition because it was African-sponsored, focused on women, and open to the diaspora. I also appreciated the “young professional mentor” component. With my product in particular, it is important to get validation from both seasoned investors and entrepreneurs but from people who would actually use the product.

How will your product benefit Africa?

Tastemakers Africa has the potential to be a game-changer for tourism in Africa but it is much bigger than that. It is a pan-african business model benefiting creators, contributors, and users. The app serves both the millenial traveler and the millenial living on the continent putting the type of experiences they crave at their fingertips. The story of those experiences will live beyond the app, changing attitudes about travel but also helping “Aspirational Africa” go global. Our hope is that our product opens the door to investment in the tourism value chain in Africa, particularly upscale experiences.

What will you do with the $10,000 cash and other prizes if you win?

Build. Build. Build. We are ready to get the mobile app launched and in the hands of users. We will take a large chunk of the money and put it into the technical development of the app. We will utilize the remaining funds to support a regional tour where we can spend time building partnerships with businesses that fit our brand and our users. Having strong ties on the continent is critical to our growth and success.

Meet Cherae Robinson and Taffi Woolward; Two of The Top 10 Finalists for the She Leads Africa Competition.Why did you enter this competition?

I entered the She Leads Africa competition because I saw it as a unique opportunity to refine my business plan and garner exposure for the Thando’s brand. This was the 1st pitch competition that I came across with a focus on women and Africa so I’m excited to meet other female entrepreneurs and investors with a similar passion for business in Africa.

How will your product benefit Africa?

Africa will benefit from Thando’s shoes because our crowdsourced designers are from the African diaspora and we will empower them by sharing in the profits from each sale of their very own shoe design. We are really focused on building a global brand. We’ve commitment to giving back 3% of company profits to organizations that support youth entrepreneurship in Africa. We want to show the world that talent, quality and creativity can come from an African brand.

What will you do with the $10,000 cash and other prizes if you win?

I will use the cash prize to grow the business. Funds will go directly towards manufacturing, marketing and personnel costs.

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