In a continent rich with potential but also plagued by numerous challenges, some have managed to rise above difficulties and pave the way in business out of sheer resolve. These African entrepreneurs did not just navigate obstacles, they turned them around and made them stepping stones on their journey to success. Their tales are not only motivating but also serve as a proof for those who love entrepreneurship because they exemplify everything from endurance, originality to relentless drive that characterises Africa’s entrepreneurial culture.
Here are five Africans who defied the odds to create prosperous businesses.
Edward Moshole
Edward Moshole’s journey from a cleaner to the CEO of Chem-Fresh is a powerful testament to perseverance and innovation. Growing up in a small town in Limpopo, South Africa, Moshole faced numerous challenges, including losing his parents at 16 and failing the eighth grade five times. Despite these setbacks, he moved to Cape Town, where he took up a job as a cleaner at a food factory. It was in a storage room filled with detergents that Moshole got the inspiration for his business. Recognizing the potential to improve cleaning products, he began purchasing bleach in bulk with just R68, reselling it to his colleagues. His simple yet effective sales pitch quickly gathered attention, leading him to expand his efforts by selling door-to-door and to local shops. However, he wasn’t content with just reselling products. Driven by a desire to create and sell his own line, he embarked on the journey of manufacturing cleaners and detergents that could meet stringent regulations and rival the top brands in the market. Moshole invested in used spice drums and a homemade mixer to start producing his own line of detergents in his backyard. This laborious process eventually paid off when his brand, Chem-Fresh, caught the attention of supermarket giant Pick n Pay in 2006 after seven years. Over the years, Moshole transformed his backyard operation into a formal business, securing contracts with major retail chains like Spar, Massmart, and Dischem. Today, Chem-Fresh is a multimillion-rand company, with a turnover of over R20 million annually, producing thousands of bottles of detergent each month.
Jason Njoku
Born in East London to a single mother, Jason faced numerous challenges growing up, including financial struggles and a series of failed business ventures after graduating with a degree in Chemistry from the University of Manchester. Despite these setbacks, Jason’s entrepreneurial spirit remained unshaken. After several unsuccessful attempts with a blog network, a T-shirt business, and a web design company, he moved back in with his mother. It was during this period that he recognized a gap in the market for Nollywood films outside Africa, inspired by his mother’s changing viewing habits. Determined to fill this void, Jason leveraged his experiences and insights to establish iROKOtv, a video-on-demand service for Nigerian movies. Starting from his bedroom in his mother’s house in Deptford, he initially launched NollywoodLove on YouTube, which quickly became profitable. This success attracted significant investment, including a $3 million Series A funding from Tiger Global. iROKOtv officially launched in December 2011 and has since grown to secure an additional $22 million in funding, amassing a film catalogue of over 5,000 movies and expanding its presence globally.
Read also: Meet Emmanuel Apollos, a serial entrepreneur turning passion for farming into business
Julian Omalla
Omalla began her career in business as an employee under her brothers’ guidance while saving diligently to start her own venture. Her early attempts at trading were promising until a betrayal by a business partner left her with minimal resources and significant setbacks. Despite the crushing blow of losing her capital, Omalla persevered, using a wheelbarrow to transport produce to market and reinvesting her meagre profits into her growing business. The harsh lesson she learned about trust and risk management became a cornerstone of her future success. Undeterred by her initial struggles, Omalla leveraged her newfound business acumen from programs such as UNCTAD’s entrepreneurship initiative and Empretec training to build Delight Uganda Limited, Uganda’s largest juice processing factory. Known as “Mama Cheers” for her popular fruit drink brand, Cheers, Omalla’s business now has an annual turnover of over $4 million and captures about 45% of the local market. Beyond juice production, she has diversified into poultry, flour milling, and a student hostel, and she actively supports women’s farmer cooperatives.
Strive Masiyiwa
Masiyiwa returned to Zimbabwe with a vision to revolutionise the telecommunications industry. Despite his ambitions, he faced resistance from the government, which claimed a monopoly over the telecommunications sector and denied him a licence for his mobile network venture, Econet Wireless. Relentless in his quest, Masiyiwa fought a protracted legal battle that lasted five years, enduring significant personal risks, including death threats. His persistence paid off when he finally secured the necessary licence and launched Econet Wireless in 1998. Today, Econet Wireless stands as Zimbabwe’s most successful corporation, with over 6 million subscribers and worldwide investors. With its headquarters in Johannesburg, the company operates across Africa, and extends its reach to the UK and China. Beyond telecommunications, Masiyiwa’s ventures include significant investments in fintech and power distribution through companies like Liquid Intelligent Technologies. His philanthropic efforts through the Higherlife Foundation support thousands of orphaned and disadvantaged children.
Abasiama Idaresit
Abasiama Idaresit’s journey to establishing Wild Fusion, a leading digital marketing agency in Africa, was marked by early struggles and an unwavering commitment to his vision. After graduating from the London School of Economics, Idaresit returned to Nigeria in 2008 with a mission to leverage technology for business growth. However, his initial efforts were met with resistance, as digital marketing was a new concept in Nigeria at the time. For the first eight months, Idaresit struggled to gain traction, facing rejection and scepticism from potential clients. His breakthrough came when he persuaded Baby M, a small business serving new mothers, to give him a chance. He offered a money-back guarantee and, with an initial payment of about $250, managed to transform Baby M’s revenue from $1,000 to $100,000 per month within three months. His success with Baby M catapulted Wild Fusion into the spotlight. Since its founding in 2010, Wild Fusion has expanded across Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya. The agency has secured high-profile clients such as Unilever, Samsung, and Visa, and became Google’s first AdWords-certified partner in West Africa.
This article was originally posted by After School Africa.
