I see opportunities, not challenges – creative entrepreneur

Victoria Praise Abraham, founder/chief executive of Vic-Abraham Media Nigeria Ltd speaks on her creative business which she started in 2011 in this interview with OLUYINKA ALAWODE

Business

I do inspirational writing, self-publish my creative works and market them. I produce portraits, musical/motivational CDs, inspirational posters and in this New Year I hope to add to my list of creations by the grace of God Almighty.

Apart from other inspirational writings I do, I write books and I have been able to publish three so far. The first one is named ‘Treasures’, the second is ‘12 Golden Laws’ and the third is ‘Hope On The Go.’

Inspiration

“Hope on the go” was written over a seven year period. It is based on a process I would call “burst of wisdom.” Writing a book was not the original idea, I initially found writing as a therapy and so enjoyed writing down my thoughts which I then shared with friends and associates around me. God inspired me in writing them but the juice came from my environment and my experiences and I believe God just wanted to bless me and humanity through the book. I thank God Almighty for the power and capacity to start the book and to finish it successfully to the point of launching it to the market.

Marketing

I market my works through my networks, friends, family members, associates, and via the internet especially on facebook.

Challenges

As a rule I do not see challenges in business, I see opportunities. Every country in the world has its own peculiarities and part of succeeding in business is to brace up to whatever challenges you face in the course of doing that business in that particular clime. Nigeria is no different. We have general issues of infrastructural deficiency, bureaucracy in some government offices, difficulty in accessing finance, to mention a few but when I left paid employment I had made up my mind that I wanted to succeed as a creative entrepreneur despite the challenges, obstacles and the odds, so I was mentally prepared to surmount every one of these challenges through the help of God, hard work and perseverance.

I had prepared myself for the long term. I started business with almost nothing but I chose to start small but I was rich in ideas, faith, patience, persistence, hard work, smart work, friendliness, and goodwill. So I used what I had to build a now thriving and flourishing business. I have to mention categorically here that God Almighty truly helped me because many have all of these qualities and today are nowhere near where I am and will probably never achieve what I have been able to achieve in such a short time.

Future prospects

A man is as great as his thoughts can take him or her. So my concept is to dream big, start small and work hard at it. I will continue to write more books and to launch them into the market and look for ways of expanding the scope of these markets especially outside the shores of Nigeria starting from West Africa and then beyond. Also I will multiply the scope of my creative works and ensure I add at least five more new items of creativity this year so that my gamut of product portfolio doubles in 2015 and thereby help to widen the marketability of these products. I will also look at partnerships with more established concerns and God helping me continue to break barriers and boundaries in the market place. No doubt there will be challenges but I am prepared to take them headlong and succeed over and over again by God’s special grace.

Books

My third book ‘Hope On The Go’ is my most creative and challenging book till date because it is a book of 365 wise sayings or quotes all originally written by me. The book contains not just quotes but images to complement each saying. It has been called a masterpiece because of the content and the final finishing of the cover which no doubt meets international standard even though the entire book, concept and production was all done and finished in Lagos, Nigeria without recourse to any foreign assistance.

The book deals with varied aspects of life including leadership, career, business, relationships to name a few. I chose to use catchy phrases to convey deep concepts but in very smart and interesting manner. The book inspires hope, it instructs and motivates, at the same time educates. It speaks to the soul of the reader and helps the reader keep in perspective that which is important and critical in life.

The foreword of the book was written by Oby Ezekwesili, former minister in Nigeria, and the review was done by Funke Treasure, general manager of Radio 1. People like Chude Jidenowo, Clara Chinwe Okoro, Bolanle Austen Peters all made comments contained in the book.

ICT

Facebook especially has been helpful because I get to display my products to friends scattered all over the world and this makes selling easier, because anyone of them interested in my product can reach me in a second and then business is done time and time again. The internet is a tool that can be deployed for the good, the bad and the ugly, but I have decided to use it positively to grow my thriving creative business.

Background

I graduated from the University of Lagos in 1989, and proceeded to England. I returned to Nigeria and decided to join Trinity Educational Services, owners of Trinity College as College Administrator. I later worked as Assistant Training Manager at Leadway Assurance Company. I left Leadway to start my own company, Vic-Abraham Media Nigeria Ltd in 2011 after attending School of Media and Communication at the Pan Atlantic University where I studied media enterprise and script writing to better enable me in my chosen line of business.

Advice

I advice today’s creative entrepreneurs to follow their passion, pay the price for their rise and rice in life. Rome was not built in a day. They have to be prepared to start small and be ready for some ridicule because people will ridicule them and their dream, but they must stand out to be counted and focus on the big picture and on their dreams without wavering.

OLUYINKA ALAWODE