a social entrepreneur, was travelling in Ghana in 1992 when she fell seriously ill – the local people helped her to recover her health. At this time she started to realise just how many people were being forced off the land through starvation following droughts. She offered financial help to buy more seed, but her offer was refused. Instead she engineered a deal – the locals would manufacture small carvings which she would buy. She brought these back to London and enrolled her friends to help her sell them in the main street markets. The profits were returned to Ghana as aid. Trade plus Aid was thus born and she has expanded into South Africa, where her business owns factories, and China, from where she sources unique enamel teapots which are sold in stores such as Harrods – amongst other places. The basic business model is unchanged. In 2004 she was approached by Nelson Mandela with a proposition. The outcome is a project whereby well-known celebrities from around the world and all walks of life design a display plate with the theme of world peace. The proceeds from each plate are donated to the chosen charity of each celebrity involved.
It’s more than luck
You’re likely to be good at it if you’re interested in it, and you will get breaks but you still have to be prepared to work really hard. People do say oh you’ve been really lucky and there’s no question, I’ve been really lucky. Really lucky in as much as I had good parents ….. I had a good education, but to a great degree, anyone can make their luck, you just have to be willing to go for it.
a social entrepreneur, was travelling in Ghana in 1992 when she fell seriously ill – the local people helped her to recover her health. At this time she started to realise just how many people were being forced off the land through starvation following droughts. She offered financial help to buy more seed, but her offer was refused. Instead she engineered a deal – the locals would manufacture small carvings which she would buy. She brought these back to London and enrolled her friends to help her sell them in the main street markets. The profits were returned to Ghana as aid. Trade plus Aid was thus born and she has expanded into South Africa, where her business owns factories, and China, from where she sources unique enamel teapots which are sold in stores such as Harrods – amongst other places. The basic business model is unchanged. In 2004 she was approached by Nelson Mandela with a proposition. The outcome is a project whereby well-known celebrities from around the world and all walks of life design a display plate with the theme of world peace. The proceeds from each plate are donated to the chosen charity of each celebrity involved.
