This week we feature our interview with Sussana the owner of Stitches by Suu a handmaking crotcheting business. She shares her journey as a Mompreneur with us, how she juggles between her family and business and what inspired her to go into this business. Her handmade crochet pieces are made with love. We hope her story inspires you.

1.How you started as a Mompreneur?

I started crocheting some nineteen years ago after JSS when I had so much time on my hands. I used to make backpacks and tops for my friends. I had a long break until 2014 when one day as I prayed about another avenue to channel my energy, I was prompted about my passion for crochet. After going back to crocheting in 2014, I still just made baby blankets and baby accessories for my friends with baby girls. After my second son, I decided to share my love for crochet with the whole world, in November 2017. So I uploaded pictures of the products on Instagram and started building a team.

2. What inspired you to take that path in business

My main inspiration is my love for crocheting. Crocheting is very therapeutic, it relaxes me therefore turning it into a business was exciting. People are often amazed about our creations and this inspires me too.

3. A little bit about your company and what you do

Stitches by Suu is a startup whose main business is crocheting lovely accessories. We create crochet baby accessories such as booties, beanies, headbands and blankets; satchels and hairbands for toddlers. As well as accessories for ladies such as crochet brooches, purses and jewelry. We are also into the sale of craft tools like crochet hooks, knitting needles, yarn, stitch markers, gauges etc. Currently we use Facebook and Instagram to showcase the creations so its online based.

4. A little background about yourself

My name is Sussana Owusua Kwarteng, a Christian, an akuapem, a wife, a mother of two boys, a civil engineer and a Project Management Professional. I attended Aburi Girls SHS and KNUST.  I work in an Oil and Gas company in Ghana as an Assistant Project Manager. My hobbies include baking, sewing, crocheting and tatting. I love to spend time with children, listen to good music and dance.

5.How you manage your day to day activities

As a project manager I apply my project management skills when I am swarmed with orders. This is basically planning my activities very well so as to finish my projects on time and within budget. I work at dawn before my corporate job and evenings. I create a list of all orders and their delivery dates with realistic timelines. I take into consideration unforeseen causes of delay when giving delivery dates to avoid disappointments.

6. How you are able to balance taking care of your family and manage the business

My family comes first so when I get home from my corporate job, I give my family as much attention as possible before I start ‘Stitches by Suu’ activities. Sometimes I work while my children play other times it’s just impossible when they both cry for my attention. I also get lots of help from my external family in taking care of my children so I can get time to work

7. What are the challenges you face

My main challenge is time as crocheting is very time consuming. Thus I tend to do late night crocheting when we have lots of orders. There are days I feel like giving up but my love for crochet propels me on. I am really passionate about what I create and staying awake so I can put a smile on a customer’s face is a warm feeling. The other challenge is pricing; most people are not ready to pay for the premium products we offer. It makes the pricing very difficult but with time I hope this challenge will be normalized.

8.What are the processes and systems that have helped you in your entrepreneurial journey

Proper time management, procuring items in bulk to minimize the need to use the little time we have to visit the market. One way that helps with time and cost management is online shopping. With online shopping a wide number of sellers are available to compare prices, read reviews from other customers and the items are also delivered conveniently. We use social media (Instagram, Facebook, whatsapp) to market and promote our products.

9. Advise to any young one who wants to start a business

My advice to young ones looking to start a business is to do what you love (no matter the number of businesses out there doing same), pray, start, give it your all and trust that God will do the rest. Until you try, you can never say it’s impossible.

Contact: 0552892733, 0208840041

Instagram: @stitchesbysuu_gh

Facebook: Stitches by Suu

Mary Dickson

Mary Dickson is a versatile professional with over a decade of experience driving innovation at the
intersection of technology, marketing, and female empowerment.
With a background in marketing she worked with Nalo Solutions Limited for 13 years leading the HR
department for 8 years and moving on to lead the marketing team for 5 years.

The Ghana Women’s Entrepreneurship Summit 2018 was a two day program organised by the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI – www.nbssi.gov.gh) in June 2018 and I must say the attendance from women in business from all parts of Ghana was overwhelming. The special guest of Honor for the event was the President of the Republic of Ghana.

According to the MasterCard’s Index of Women’s Entrepreneurship 46.4% of businesses in Ghana are owned by women. It is not surprising that over 600 people from all walks of life thronged the Mövenpick Ambassador Hotel in Accra to benefit from what the NBSSI had to support their businesses.

The theme for the summit for this year was ‘Voices into Action’. This is in the quest to find innovative ways to harness the untapped potential of women entrepreneurs.

In my first day of participating, I sat through the Kaizen Master Class though as an entrepreneur I am not into manufacturing or production. But I found this class useful for my personal office workspace and home.

Kaizen, also known as continuous improvement, is a long-term approach to work that systematically seeks to achieve small, incremental changes in processes in order to improve efficiency and quality.
Some benefits of this practice includes

1. Increase productivity
2. Improved quality
3. Better safety
4. Lower costs
5. Improved customer satisfaction
PS: I would advise all Mompreneurs into production and manufacturing to read more on this to better optimize their business processes.

I networked and met a couple of women in business, and we shared some business ideas and exchanged contacts.

The second day is where all the fun began….

So on the second day of the summit I was ushered in to the fourth row from the front and I was asked to sit beside a beautiful woman who should be in her mid thirties if not more. We were the only two seated on that row as that time. We were quiet for a while but then she says hello and then we introduced ourselves. Through conversation we realize we are both on a female founders group platform formed by Ispace. We had a long conversation before the program actually started. I got to know about her project Akoobooks, African Audio books.

My first lesson for the day,events are all about networking. Don’t coil in at events especially networking events. Learn to reach out to others or opportunities may pass you by.

There were quiet a number of panel discussions on topics such as Mainstreaming the informal economy and Innovation Using Digital Technology. All these discussions were handled by men and women who are well vexed with high level of knowledge in the various topics.

We had a doctor share with us some health challenges entrepreneurs face everyday, Some simple healthy morning routines and some good eating practices.

There was an exhibition on-going at the event grounds that showcased wonderful Made in Ghana products and services being rendered by some of the Women in Business.

It was great to see some Mompreneurs showcasing their craft at the event.

My top 5 take away tips from the event to date has been

1. Innovation, always try to find new and creative ways to keep your business running. We need to challenge ourselves as entrepreneurs
2. Network, it is essential to take advantage of events that seek to promote entrepreneurship growth
3. We need to move from voice to action
4. Social media is a great gift to us as entrepreneurs. We should harness these tools to the advantage of our business.
5. We must learn to take risks. Sometimes risks come with great rewards.

Mary Dickson

Mary Dickson is a versatile professional with over a decade of experience driving innovation at the
intersection of technology, marketing, and female empowerment.
With a background in marketing she worked with Nalo Solutions Limited for 13 years leading the HR
department for 8 years and moving on to lead the marketing team for 5 years.

Managing lean seasons is one common challenge faced by entrepreneurs in their journey. As an entrepreneur a consistent paycheck is not guaranteed once you take that path. With the journey coupled with income peaks and valleys, how do you handle the lean seasons as an entrepreneur? It is essential to develop smart strategies, acquire varied skills that will enable your business stand during these lean seasons.

There are usually quite a number of reasons that leads to this fluctuation. We may not be able to prepare ourselves and our businesses for every set back but you could consider these five tips to help you sail through and handle your lean seasons professionally.

1. Diversify income streams.

You may have your primary business running, but it doesn’t hurt to set up other additional revenue sources to support your main business. Only ensure the attention to your other alternatives streams of income does not cloud your focus on the main business. Remember the rule is “Do not put all your eggs in one basket”.

2. Understand trends in your industry.

As a business owner it is essential to understand the trends and cycles in the industry you find yourself. Understanding these trends enables you to plan and know which time of the year accounts for high sales and which time accounts for low or no sales at all.

It helps you to plan well and enables you to use your peak to cover up for the loss in the lean seasons. It is essential to research and get a plan to sustain you through the lean times.

3. Develop a plan for your Business sustainability

“It is not the strongest of the species that survive, not the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.” Charles Darwin. 

You can only be responsive to change in a business environment when you have a plan in place written or unwritten. As a business owner At least you need to have a forecast of about 6months for your business. Having a plan in place will help you hold the business through the lean seasons and still hold your head up high.

4. Make an effort t0 stay Visible in the market

“Ninety-nine percent of anything is showing up. The minute you stop showing up, people stop following you. ~Clare V.~

Make a conscious effort to show up everyday, every time at the right places. Research on your target groups and market and ensure you are always in touch with them . You can increase your visibility through your social media platforms. At least post three times a week to get your followers to remember you and know you are still in business.

Set your business apart by making yourself available throughout the year in the most effective marketing strategies you can use.

5. Be strong and Don’t Panic.

We may sometimes put plans in place to cater for these lean times, but the emotions may sometimes take over during these periods. During these times if you do not put yourself together or seek advise you may take some decisions that may affect the long term of your business. When you face these lean seasons in your business, understand that you aren’t alone.

Remember that other businesses are facing these struggles or have faced these struggles before and if they were able to sail through and make it then you sure can do it too. Believe in yourself, explore , keep your head up high and continue to push. The best is yet to come in your business.

Mary Dickson

Mary Dickson is a versatile professional with over a decade of experience driving innovation at the
intersection of technology, marketing, and female empowerment.
With a background in marketing she worked with Nalo Solutions Limited for 13 years leading the HR
department for 8 years and moving on to lead the marketing team for 5 years.

Most often when we hear the word Strategic plan we relate it to a plan for corporate bodies. Who says small business owners cannot also invest in a strategic plan for their business. When you aim at putting your business on the global map a strategic plan is a must.
Don’t just aim to make a living out of your business mama, Aim to create a lasting business that will leave a legacy.
Creating a strategic plan helps you deal with internal and eternal forces that affect the long term success of your business. Through a strategic plan you are able to identify your core competence, uniquely position yourself in your industry and most importantly thrive no matter what your environment throws at you.
The first month of the year is almost ended;

These simple steps should serve as a guide to modify your already existing plan or help you develop a plan for your business if you do not have one.

Identify your Mission and Vision

First of all its important for you to identify your vision, mission and values as a business; The mission of your business will tell people what you exist to do as a company.
Your vision seeks to help you identify what kind of business you want your business to be in the future.
Your values are the guiding beliefs. These guiding beliefs define for you and your clients what your business will or will not accept. What do you want to be known for, e.g Belief in being the best in provision of IT equipment.

Carry out a SWOT analysis

Secondly carry out SWOT analysis. At this stage you analyze your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Your strengths are the resources that your business owns that can help you achieve your objectives. These resources include human, technology, finance, skills, abilities, products, services.
Your weaknesses are the resources that you would need as a business to run your operations which you do not have. Lack of these could affect your mission and vision.
Opportunities are situations that your business can take advantage , they usually come unexpected whilst the threats are forces that you may not have control over that can adversely affect your business.

After carrying out SWOT, determine your overall goals and targets..What are you committed to achieving this year . It may be selling 1million of your products, you should be able to quantify your objectives as business.

Formulate your strategies

Formulate your strategies from there on the basis of the SWOT analysis you have undertaken. Under your strategies look at your marketing penetration strategy, your market development strategy and your product development strategy.

After formulating your strategies, prepare your strategic plan where you incorporate the vision, mission, values, SWOT analysis and objectives.

Strategic plans are usually long term plans for the business so will most of the time lie with you as the business owner.

To help your team understand the direction you want to go, Develop a tactical plan that breaks down the strategic plan into day by day tasks to be achieved and assign to respective team members,

After putting the tactical plan into action, incorporate control system  to ensure you are on course as a business.

Interested in our Strategic plan template. Send us an email on mary.sackey@gmail.com

Author
Mary A.S.Sackey
Media & Marketing Manager
NALO Solutions Limited.

Mary Dickson

Mary Dickson is a versatile professional with over a decade of experience driving innovation at the
intersection of technology, marketing, and female empowerment.
With a background in marketing she worked with Nalo Solutions Limited for 13 years leading the HR
department for 8 years and moving on to lead the marketing team for 5 years.

Its been almost 2 months since the first ever all mothers in business club in Ghana was launched and it seems its members are already reaping some great benefits and expanding their businesses.  We caught up with some few mothers to share their experiences since they joined the club and they gave us a lot of good feedback on how they have been transformed in their thinking and how business has improved for them.

Mavis Asamoah is a clinical Registered Dietitian and has a passion to see people eat healthy and combat diet related diseases.

She has over 14 yrs of experience in the field of Dietetics and have worked in almost all areas of healthcare that involves nutrition. “I started business in Ghana after relocating from Canada but I felt like I was sinking after sometime , until my good friend Glory Yankson (CEO of CancerConnectGH, called me one day and told me about a group called the MOMPRENEURS. At first I was sceptical but, my good friend kept insisting on me checking it out. So I called ETHEL the CEO and right away I had a good vibe from her”, she stated

Ethel Marfo was so good and could sense her kindness from the call. Then came the day I was introduced on the platform,  wow, wow, wow, the hellos and the greetings where overwhelming and everyone was asking and inquiring about what I was doing. It was almost surreal at first. But I can honestly say that for the last 6 weeks that I have been on the platform and joined this wonderful group of sisters, there has not been a day that I have not laughed out loud.

I have been encouraged, educated, supported, directed, prayed for, brought along when I thought to stay behind, and made to feel like I have been with this group for years!!  I have had great patronage of my business and have networked with others to patronize their businesses as well. I have also met some wonderful women and are forming lasting friendships. Mompreneurs has been a lifeline for me and my business.  I have been truly blessed to be a part of this wonderful initiative by Ethel and I pray that God will give her more vision and the strength to grow BIGGER AND BETTER IDEAS.

 ~Mavis Asamoah, BSc, BScNutr, LD, RD- Registered  Clinical Dietitian~

For ~ Stella Darley Tweneboah~ Before GMC launch, Pertel Domelpp Services (An employment agency for Domestic Support and other Domestic Solutions had been registered and all but for one reason or the other, she was working under wraps cos she found herself in one job or the other, and hence not paying so much attention to it.

“This was because I felt when am working and earning some income it would help me push it or at least fall back on the salary when things are not as planned. Which of course works to some extent in some cases”, she stated.

Somehow at a point the job thing was not as expected just around that time the GMC was launched, even at the maiden event, while filling out the form, I was contemplating writing the name of the company or not because I was actually there as a Brand manager to a magazine. And also to nurture my dream of making Pertel Domelpp Services real.

A question of what I expect of my company by the end of the year and i indicated that I hope to build the pillars of my company. This by God’s grace are more like done.

~Ruth Cofie~  believes Ghana Mompreneur’s Club has helped her realized that there’s nothing as a ‘stupid’ business idea. But with prayers, determination, perseverance and hard work, anyone, especially mothers can attain the heights they wish to. GMC is indeed one of a kind!!

~Founder of Nfoniri.com~

To join the Ghana Mompreneurs club, kindly call 0244605206 for registration details.

Mary Dickson

Mary Dickson is a versatile professional with over a decade of experience driving innovation at the
intersection of technology, marketing, and female empowerment.
With a background in marketing she worked with Nalo Solutions Limited for 13 years leading the HR
department for 8 years and moving on to lead the marketing team for 5 years.

The first ever all mothers in business club in Ghana was launched at the gathering Mompreneurs Brunch Meeting last week Friday 10^th February, 2017 at the UDS Guest House.

The well-organized programme was initiated and put together by host Mrs. Ethel Adjorlolo Marfo who is also the founder & CEO at Junior Shapers Africa.

The MC for the programme was the all gorgeous TV Host and Entrepreneur Dzifa Gray, Queen of the morning ride on Metro TV. The Guest speaker for the meeting was Mrs. Afi Amoro, CEO of Jandel Limited.

 The event started with the opening remarks by Mrs. Adjorlolo Marfo. She educated the members on the objectives and mission of the Club as well as the benefits of becoming a member, after which Dzifa Gray was introduced to us as the MC.

Dzifa Gray in turn also touched on some few words of encouragement in make the environment lively and get everyone’s attention to participate.

She then introduced the Guest speaker , Mrs. Afi Amoro who came to share with us her experiences and her journey as an employee and how she transitioned into starting her own journey which was an inspiring story.

Mrs. Amoro touched on the need to build strong support networks as an entrepreneur, the need to be resilient in order to be successful and the importance of making time with the family and not forgetting the God factor in all things. The words she left with us was to “Treasure our highs and learn from our lows”.

After her speech, there was a question and answer session where attendees were given the opportunity to share their experiences and ask questions.

We had individuals like the CEO of Lola’s Braiding Centre, Hottees, Sahara Rise Hospitality and Senam Foods share their experiences on their Mompreneurs journey with us.

In all the Ghana Mompreneurs Club as stated by the host will be dedicated to sharing information on business opportunities to its members and also provide support network for its members.

To join the Ghana Mompreneurs club, kindly call 0244605206 for registration details.

Mary Dickson

Mary Dickson is a versatile professional with over a decade of experience driving innovation at the
intersection of technology, marketing, and female empowerment.
With a background in marketing she worked with Nalo Solutions Limited for 13 years leading the HR
department for 8 years and moving on to lead the marketing team for 5 years.

The responsibilities of mothers have evolved overtime to include a whole lot more aside the everyday motherhood duties at home.
Mothers are currently managing very sucessful businesses aside the motherhood duties of taking care of the home and children.
A sucessful mompreneur is one who is able to balance between all these activities at home and work and can still walk in the heels confidently not looking all stressed out.
It isnt an easy task it requires a lot of help from family especially the husband, prioritization of activities and making use of every little time.
For a Mompreneur time is very precious and is of great essence.

The Qualities of a Mompreneur can be drawn from the story of the virtuous wife in the Prov. 31:10 -31 verse:
As it says

¹³ She selects wool and flax
    and works with eager hands.
¹⁴ She is like the merchant ships,
    bringing her food from afar.
¹⁵ She gets up while it is still night;
    she provides food for her family
    and portions for her female servants.
¹⁶ She considers a field and buys it;
    out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.
¹⁷ She sets about her work vigorously;
    her arms are strong for her tasks.
¹⁸ She sees that her trading is profitable,
    and her lamp does not go out at night.
²¹ When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
    for all of them are clothed in scarlet.
²² She makes coverings for her bed;
    she is clothed in fine linen and purple.
²³ Her husband is respected at the city gate,
    where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.
²⁷ She watches over the affairs of her household
    and does not eat the bread of idleness.
²⁸ Her children arise and call her blessed;
    her husband also, and he praises her

I discovered some qualities that will make a mom successful both with her house hold duties and managing a business in this verse .
1. Focus and positivity

2. Wisdom from God and should be a critical thinker.

3. It is essential to also have a skill aside the education which is also important.

These skills have nurtured some mothers into business owners, fashion designers, Make up artists, Event planners and many more.
What skills are you planning on acquiring as a mother to be, or as a practicing mother now. There are lots of opportunities for us in Ghana and a wide untapped market for business.

Starting a business on your own as a mother helps you to also dedicate a lot of time to family duties, in any case we work to ensure the family is well taken care of. 
Ask yourself how often do yu get to spend quality time with your kids as a #mompreneur or working mother. It is essential and important.
Be part of the children’s life as they grow.
That is one great quality of a successful Mompreneur



By an Aspiring Mompreneur

Mary Dickson

Mary Dickson is a versatile professional with over a decade of experience driving innovation at the
intersection of technology, marketing, and female empowerment.
With a background in marketing she worked with Nalo Solutions Limited for 13 years leading the HR
department for 8 years and moving on to lead the marketing team for 5 years.