AWEC Business Academy Learner Spotlight: Lulu Kimbio - Staying Ahead of the Game with AWEC’s Latest Course!

Over the last eight months, the impact of the pandemic has unveiled major shifts in customer behaviour. Consumers are becoming more discerning and business owners must respond to new and different expectations for authenticity, service, and overall experience. The AWEC Business Academy courses are designed for African women business owners to stay up-to-date, prepared and equipped to navigate and manoeuvre intelligently, through some of the challenges that arise with constant change.

It’s why Lulu Kimbio, who is also a Fellow in AWEC’s Year 3 cohort, recently completed an extra online course focused on ‘Applying Design Thinking to Satisfy Changing Customer Needs’ and is advocating for African women entrepreneurs to sign up for the upcoming course on ‘Establishing A Brand Identity.’ We caught up with Lulu to discuss her motivations and experience from the previous course.

Could you give us a brief overview of your business?

Luguah Naturals is a natural and organic beauty brand, specializing in skin care, hair care and lip products—or least that’s what my husband and I strongly believed it was when we started because we really wanted to cater for a broader target market. The interesting thing is that what I’m learning in AWEC’s 12-month long Core Program has pushed us to make some shifts and a lot of things in the company have started to evolve.  We have reached the point where we are redefining what our business really is and we’ve seen that we should focus more on the skin-care products because we’ve identified that this is what our customers want particularly now during the pandemic.

We were preparing to launch the hair care range but it was the lessons I learnt on the Business Academy course, that made me realize [that] the natural hair care community is very niche, hair textures are so different and we could spend a lot of time trying to customize everything we do. [But] ‘skin’ will never go out of business. We have decided to add a new product to complete our skin-care range.

The whole process so far has been an epiphany, like a ‘WOW’ moment for me. This is one of the best things about AWEC - the practicality of the course and hearing other people’s real life experiences. Self-doubt is real but when you meet other entrepreneurs and hear about what they’ve had to endure, particularly if they’ve had to change everything about their business, you realise that it’s actually ok to go through that. So I am feeling really good and confident about what we’ve had to do.

How did you find out about the AWEC Business Academy?

I had not seen the email announcement about the course when it came through the first time. When I saw the topic I almost cried; kicking myself for not checking my emails earlier. I did not expect anyone to pull out but I still went ahead and registered my interest [to be on the waitlist] just in-case.

Why did you feel the need to enroll in the Design Thinking course?

Design Thinking is what really sets things in motion, whether they be ideas or products. Knowing we want to release a new product meant that this course came at the right time.

Another email came through announcing that the Business Academy team were opening up 50 more spots on the course and THAT was my chance! I didn’t even bother to read all the details, I went straight for the ‘Enroll’ button. I was so excited I burnt the food I was cooking whilst completing the application form.

What were your expectations of the course versus your actual experience?

I’ll start by saying it was mind blowing! I got to use everything we were learning as my guiding steps. Expectations of the course were quite modest, because I wasn’t too sure how much I would be able to get out of it. 

Without the sugar-coating; when AWEC says the course is ‘fast paced’...those words should be stated in BLOCK LETTERS and BOLD!! I really thought that because I’m doing the Core Program I understood ‘fast paced’ and this would be a breeze. WOAH, from week one, we started lessons on Sunday, then Monday, Tuesday, BAM; activity! Then Thursday, Friday, Saturday, BAM; assignment! And I thought ‘Woosh, oh lord, they’re not joking, this is going to finish me’ [laughs]. 

My experience was invaluable and I can't even quantify it in any way.  

And as much as the courses are about your business, I actually used Design Thinking for myself. I believe I am also someone else’s design, so I asked myself; ‘Am I doing what I was meant to do? Is this my full potential?’ I’m designing my products to do what they are made to do so in my case ‘What changes do I need to make, to become a better business owner?’

How do you see yourself applying what you learnt on the Design Thinking course to your business or within your team?

My team is just me right now, wearing all the hats [laughs].

Our company is very customer centric and we thrive on that. Going through the Empathy Map, we were forced to articulate what our customers say, how they think and feel and what they do. It’s definitely not something we had ever thought about. My husband and I started this business to address a problem for people but we never really took the time to get to know or understand them. It’s been amazing just to see myself grow through these steps. I can honestly say, now that I can empathize with our customers, I plan on re-establishing a different kind of relationship. 

Defining our customers by creating personas and visualizing the customer journey has highlighted some things I would have overlooked; like opportunities available to us that we never knew existed, as well as areas of weakness in the business that I’m now aware of and are currently being addressed. With every week's activity and assignment; there was nothing that was not practical and immediately applicable. And when I say ‘immediate’ I mean—as in—NOW! 

I remember the ‘What’s In The Bag’ activity where you had to think about and list probable items that your customer would be carrying in their ‘everyday’ bag. I contacted one of my customer’s after completing the activity and was surprised to hear her confirm she carried most of the things I had listed in her bag. I was so proud to hear this because it confirmed that I do know my customer quite a bit. Prior to the course it would have been a guessing game but because of the activity I was forced to go deeper; think carefully and explain why I thought she would carry specific items. Such an eye-opening exercise. 

These courses are not limited to your business growth; they enhance your personal growth as well. This is our fourth year in business and I can honestly say even a year ago, I would not have accepted to do this interview because I had no confidence in myself or my business. But now I am so sure of who I am, both personally and professionally and I’m aware of my brand and it’s potential. 

What advice would you give to anyone who might be considering whether to enroll in an AWEC Business Academy Course?

Go for it NOW! I have already applied for the next one! I am waiting for that fast paced course in November. If I don't take this course I am going to regret it. I’ve just come from learning to design something and now the course on Branding is on offer, why wouldn't I go for it? My husband has always told me no one should teach you about your business and he is right. 

You might think you know everything there is to know and sometimes all it takes is just that one phrase or element from the entire course to effect change.

I wouldn’t want anyone to come and steal my business because I did not know enough about it...I know my numbers now and I know all about my expenses, I can tell you the ins and outs of it without doing guesswork and no one can tell me otherwise...It’s been good to see myself get the layers into who I am. 

Going through the Core Program and taking the Business Academy short courses is ALL beginning to make sense. Every ounce of knowledge you gain goes straight into the business!

Expect the course on Establishing a Brand Identity to be amazing because of the industry experts leading it. However I would also say that if you haven't gone through the Design Thinking course, you might miss out on the gradual flow that happens between the two. But don’t hesitate, enroll for it.

Thanks to AWEC, I really like who I am becoming; this is the person I was always meant to be.  

The AWEC Business Academy is a cooperative learning experience designed for African women entrepreneurs seeking to develop specific business management skills in just one month. Topics offered in the Business Academy often go beyond what is available in the core program curriculum and are designed to be practical, applied, and interactive, but in a condensed time frame. 

Our next course will explore the key components necessary for companies to build customer loyalty and competitive advantage. ‘Establishing a Brand Identity’ is still open for registration.