Entrepreneurship Zone: 03 July 2023 :: Lelemba Phiri: The investor who backs Africa’s women entrepreneurs

Mon Jul 3 10:08:53 CAT 2023

 <https://bullszimbabwe.com/> 

 <http://www.bullszimbabwe.com/> Bullszimbabwe.com
<mailto:info at bulls.co.zw?subject=View%20and%20Comments> Views & Comments
<http://www.bulls.co.zw/blog> Bullish Thoughts
<http://www.twitter.com/BullsBears2010> Twitter
<https://www.facebook.com/BullsBearsZimbabwe> Facebook
<http://www.linkedin.com/pub/bulls-n-bears-zimbabwe/57/577/72> LinkedIn
<https://chat.whatsapp.com/CF6wllAfScU9Wr6dXxoQnO> WhatsApp
<mailto:bulls at bullszimbabwe.com?subject=Unsubscribe> Unsubscribe

Entrepreneurship Zone: 03 July 2023 ::  Lelemba Phiri: The investor who
backs Africa’s women entrepreneurs

·          

 <https://www.hyundai.co.zw/> 

Lelemba Phiri is not afraid of jumping headfirst into the unknown. She
lists it as one of her best qualities, a competitive advantage actually.

“When I am clear on the ‘what’, I simply take the leap. I jump in with lots
of intention and clarity on where I eventually want to land, never being too
perturbed about exactly ‘how’ it is all going to happen,” she says.

The 39-year-old Zambian-born business owner and gender-lens investor
believes many people become paralysed when they overthink the ‘how’, to the
point where they simply cannot progress their ideas forward.

This has never been her style. She credits her frequent leaps of faith as
some of the best business decisions she has ever made. She encourages other
entrepreneurs to be clear on their vision and the goals they want to
achieve, and then… to simply go for it.

Always an entrepreneur

Phiri was born into a large middle-income family in the Zambian city of
Kitwe. She finished high school, then completed her chartered accounting
studies in Zambia before achieving a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied
Accounting from Oxford Brookes University in the UK.

“I’ve been an entrepreneur from childhood,” says Phiri. She was already
earning money from a young age by granting loans to her siblings. In college
she had to contribute to the payment of her studies and started selling just
about anything that could generate some income. “I was flogging everything
from chicken to rice to lingerie to fish,” she laughs. Her decision to study
accounting was a rational, reasoned choice because it was one of the fields
of study where she could earn money in her line of work whilst still
finishing her degree.

Her first job was as an accounts administrator in a photo shop and then she
spent some time working for the Zambian revenue services. After getting
married to Sandras Phiri, the pair relocated to Cape Town, South Africa.

They had savings that they thought would last them eight to ten months. So
they moved with their two young children (aged five and one at the time),
without a job offer in South Africa or a structured plan. They leapt into a
new chapter of their lives with only a clear vision of the ambitions they
had – to build big businesses. In the nick of time – she vividly remembers
having a total of R347 (about $19) left in their bank account – Sandras
landed a job and shortly after that, so did she.

“The times we ran out of money were definitely challenging,” Phiri says,
remembering that brief bout of panic shortly after the move. “These moments
test you to the brink of your faith and wits.”

She progressed from an accounting position for oilfield services company
Schlumberger to regional asset manager for eight of its African markets. But
while challenging, the role did not match up with her internal drive and
passion.

“By the time I left that job I was feeling disoriented. I was working in
this big corporate machine, not really feeling where my impact was landing.
I really wanted to do something that was meaningful and where I was
contributing to the solution,” she says.

The road to becoming an investor

Phiri resigned and opened up the Africa Trust Academy, providing financial
education training to clients. A year later, she enrolled for a Masters in
Development Finance at the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of
Business. One of her husband’s MBA classmates forwarded a career note about
a money transfer startup operating in Zambia that was looking for someone to
merge the cultures of its Lusaka office in Zambia with that of their Cape
Town-headquarters.

The initial conversation with Zoona excited Phiri. At the time the company
had about 17 employees between the two offices and had still not entered
their first fundraising round. She joined as a consultant and started
assisting where she could, quickly discerning what the business needed at
the time: brand awareness; a strong team; and a laser-focus on customer
experience. In the process of helping Zoona achieve these objectives, she
fell in love with the company.

Phiri does not believe that entrepreneurship is exclusively reserved for
creators. She believes there is another category of entrepreneur as well.
Those who don’t necessarily create new products or services.

“Some people argue that they are not creative and therefore
entrepreneurship is not an option. But I believe you have to ask yourself
what unique strength you could bring to a team. Then you use that to
negotiate yourself some equity in order to have a say in how strategy should
be driven. That’s how it happened for me at Zoona,” she says.

Zoona appointed her permanently, first as a financial controller and then
later asked her to move back to Zambia as managing director. She took the
leap, again, and it paid off. In the seven years she dedicated to Zoona, the
company increased its agents from 70 to over 3, 500, resulting in more than
5, 000 indirect jobs. She drove the expansion into Malawi and received that
market as part of her responsibilities along with Zambia.

Phiri was actively involved in every fundraising round the company
undertook. “As I was heading big parts of the organisation, I often had to
lead investor conversations, taking possible funders on field tours,
explaining the business and its growth potential,” she says. It was here
that she picked up the experience and skills that would make a future as
fund manager and investor a reality.

Creating an ecosystem where women-led business can thrive

In 2018 she left her job as chief marketing officer (her last position at
Zoona) to start the Africa Trust Group (ATG). The business offers early
stage gender-lens funding, entrepreneur and enterprise development, access
to markets and trade facilitation as well as business research and support
services. She remains a shareholder in Zoona and is the chairperson of the
company’s Zambian board.

“Of course it was a difficult decision to leave, but I did feel like I got
to a point where I had contributed as much value as I possibly could and my
larger mission was calling me,” she says.

At the end of 2018 she announced the launch of ATG’s gender-lens investment
fund at a regional SADC development finance conference. The fund had no
committed investors, yet.

“That’s how I keep myself accountable,” Phiri says. “I tell the public.
It’s a personal life hack.” She understood the ultimate goal post and
committed to it by putting it out into the world. Thus, the announcement was
technically also the start of her fundraising roadshow. She had put her
vision out into the world and now had to make it a reality. Another leap
taken.

It was by no means a smooth ride. When she left Zoona, Phiri had enough
savings, a financial runway, of one year. What followed was meeting after
meeting, connections being made, networks being tapped, knocking on doors,
sharing her idea, fine-tuning her fundraising proposal deck over and over
and sending it out far and wide. She leveraged her well-established
networks, continuously learning and honing her pitch. But time was ticking
away.

In 2019, only a month or two away from reaching the end of her runway, the
right investor received her pitch. It was Sarah Dusek, one half of the
management duo of Enygma Ventures in the United States. At first Phiri
simply tapped into Dusek’s expertise to further perfect her business
proposal. However, after a very successful meeting in May 2019 between Sarah
and Jacob Dusek with Phiri and her husband, the two companies joined forces
and launched a R100 million ($5.7 million) venture capital fund to invest
into women-owned or -led businesses that have the capability to grow and be
scaled.

Qualifying businesses undergo an investment readiness programme led by the
operating partner for Enygma Ventures in the region: Africa Trust Group.

>From over 900 applicants the first cohort of 11 businesses were selected
and are currently undergoing the programme. The ventures selected hail from
as far and wide as Zambia, Swaziland, South Africa and Angola. It includes
businesses in the consumer goods industry, such as Black Mamba (offering
chili products sourced from Swaziland farmers) and MsLondon Cosmetics, to
education and educare service providers such as Educartis and Playsense.

Facilitating these investments and assisting the businesses to gear
themselves for growth is exactly where Phiri envisioned herself to be when
she decided to leave Zoona two years ago. Although the “how” was unclear,
she obtained what she deliberately set out to achieve.

Her networks were instrumental in getting her to this point. She diligently
protects this asset and advises other entrepreneurs: Do not burn bridges. “I
have never surprised anyone when I made a decision to leave or take a
different direction. We discuss my decision and find a way to work towards
it, together.” she says. Burning bridges is completely unnecessary.

“You have no idea how small the world is. Maintain those business
relationships. Good goodbyes create more scope for a bigger support system
for you in the future.”—Howwemadeitinafrica

Lelemba Phiri

-Howwemadeitinafrica

Invest Wisely!

Bulls n Bears 

Cellphone:      <tel:%2B263%2077%20344%201674> +263 77 344 1674

Alt. Email:       <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> info at bulls.co.zw  

Website:         <http://www.bullszimbabwe.com> www.bullszimbabwe.com 

Blog:
<https://bullszimbabwe.com/category/blogs/bullish-thoughts/>
www.bullszimbabwe.com/blog

Twitter:         @bullsbears2010

LinkedIn:       Bulls n Bears Zimbabwe

Facebook:
<http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FBullsBearsZimba
bwe&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNGhb_A5rp4biV1dGHbgiAhUxQqBXA>
www.facebook.com/BullsBearsZimbabwe

Skype:         Bulls.Bears 

DISCLAIMER: This report has been prepared by Bulls ‘n Bears, a division of
Faith Capital (Pvt) Ltd for general information purposes only and does not
constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy or
subscribe for any securities. The information contained in this report has
been compiled from sources believed to be reliable, but no representation or
warranty is made or guarantee given as to its accuracy or completeness. All
opinions expressed and recommendations made are subject to change without
notice. Securities or financial instruments mentioned herein may not be
suitable for all investors. Securities of emerging and mid-size growth
companies typically involve a higher degree of risk and more volatility than
the securities of more established companies. Neither Faith Capital nor any
other member of Bulls ‘n Bears nor any other person, accepts any liability
whatsoever for any loss howsoever arising from any use of this report or its
contents or otherwise arising in connection therewith. Recipients of this
report shall be solely responsible for making their own independent
investigation into the business, financial condition and future prospects of
any companies referred to in this report. Other  Indices quoted herein are
for guideline purposes only and sourced from third parties.

(c) 2023 Web: <http://www.bullszimbabwe.com>  www.bullszimbabwe.com Email:
bulls at bullszimbabwe.com <mailto:bulls at bullszimbabwe.com?subject=Unsubscribe>
Tel: +263 4 2927658 Cell: +263 77 344 1674

-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: winmail.dat
Type: application/ms-tnef
Size: 796926 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://listmail.bulls.co.zw/pipermail/bulls/attachments/20230703/a5544f4b/attachment-0001.bin>