MEET ARIANA
Amazingly some young Sierra Leoneans have stepped up to the clarion call of Mama Sierra Leone in terms of investing into the future. The riches of emerging economies go past minerals and oils, rather it is the ability of humans to look into ways of utilizing their minds vs. natural resources. A great way of doing that is through entrepreneurship, finding or designing solutions to needs through products and services.
Sylthea Redwood-Sawyerr studied Electrical Electronics Engineering at the University of Sierra Leone Fourah Bay College with BEng. Honours in 2008 and has challenged herself through the ranks of Information Technology in Sierra Leone.
Nevertheless the experiences of her childhood relating to her mother’s entrepreneurship skill had buried a seed of love for the same. She enjoyed good coffee and found the need to create hers .This was to improve her cupping experience but she also seized the opportunity to look into how she could do it differently considering the howlocal products were produced, packaged and sold on the global market. Her research increased her passion, she was on a quest to prepare and present organic grounded coffee like it had never been offered before. This birthed Nina’s Coffee, which is handpicked experience made with love. During the coffee roasting exercise music is played in the background which sets the pace. Coffee roasting is an art and science. The process is done in small batches which give its depth of flavour and a unique taste profile. The aroma produced from the bean, the specialty blending techniques and the time taken during the roast process is an important factor behind Nina’s specialty brew.
Nina’s Coffee is sourced from a beautiful town in the Eastern part of Sierra Leone called Yekebema. This is located in the Kono district.
Sylthea was on a mission like no other, she decided that with each sale of Nina’s Coffee she could help make business better for;
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The lives of the farmers
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The employees she works with and customers she served
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The nation as a whole
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Help in the socioeconomic development of the nation
She says her company is her ‘MUSE’, she prides herself with the innovative solutions that they have brought into the industry. Citing that when Nina’s Coffee was born they started off using plastic packaging but after doing a lot of research and the fact that plastic bags are among the widespread pollutants in our surroundings they decided to switch to eco-friendly packaging.
Solving the issue of plastic, plastic litter has become a worldwide pollutant causing negative environmental and social impact. Therefore they decided to best replace with ecofriendly bags which has helped improve their brand image, is a sustainable package, and is multipurpose and biodegradable.
One major challenge is coffee sourcing. Coffee is seasonal so it’s only available during the dry season. Communication poses a serious challenge as network operators have poor cell coverage in some of those areas and this also affects the urgency in which payments can be made through Mobile money (Orange/Africell Money) which is the easiest way to transfer funds to these areas.
These delays in payments have the attendant effect on time of delivery of the beans and hence stock replenishment. In spite of these hurdles, timely order and stock control measure have been instituted to ensure a smooth flow and delivery of the product.
Sylthea believes that business success is when you have an ideal. It’s a feeling of contribution and service to others. She derives great satisfaction from the process of creation — starting with just an idea and building something that lasts and the reward is good feedback from satisfied customers which provides a feeling of accomplishment. Nina’s coffee has a massive potential for both national and international expansion and has become a brand name in Sierra Leone.
Her advice to other entrepreneurs is to stay consistent in the quality of product. She added that broad based marketing including the social media is key and is a good medium to share and build up your brand. She believes that been unique, different, makes a good first impression, also listening to customers and establishing trust.
Personal deliveries are made(+23278627514) and Nina’s Coffee can be obtained from the following outlets:
*Crown Xpress-Wilkinson Road
*Choithrams Supermarket-Krootown Road
*Nassim Supermarket- Spur Road
*Jemlenn Enterprises – 69 Campbell Street
This article was first published on Sierraeye Magazine.
