Being a successful entrepreneur undoubtedly takes passion, by the bucketload. In China, opportunities are endless, but so are the potential pitfalls, and the passion factor needs to be through the roof.
For expats, this environment, plus enticements by the exploding social media scene, constricted by language and cultural barriers, leads many young and eager individual to wonder where on Earth to start.
This very scene was then backdrop to an event held last Saturday evening, 21st November, that aimed to empower young potential foreign entrepreneurs in Nanjing. With the catchy title “Safari Startup; from Dormrooms to Boardrooms”, 54 attendees at the T.S. Haoting Hotel off Gulou heard first hand from three experienced panelists in a range of professions as to the struggles, courage, successes and experience that await with their hopeful entry into the entrepreneurial world.
The presentations were followed by a Q&A and a session entitled MeetMe, in which spoke the founder of student startup clothing firm Golflines. Attendees then enjoyed the networking opportunities that were an essential core to the evening.
The event’s mantra, shaping a career path you want, was explained to Nanjing Expat by organiser Ibrahim Mkamba, 27, of Tanzania, and founder of Naoligroup; “When we were students wanting to open a company we didn’t know what to do, what people we should talk to. So that’s why I started this event; to help people knows these things at an early stage”.
Panelist Monica Viteri started out in China as an ESL teacher and is now Sales Manager (Latin America market) for TCC Group, a Chinese trading and manufacturing group. Of her decision to participate as panelist for Startup Safari, she said, “China has opened a lot of doors for me, which unfortunately my country didn’t. This was a chance to share my very personal experience in letting the students know what I have been through, to help them find an easier way to reach success”.
Nowadays, as an English teacher who also works for a sourcing and trading company that serves the construction industry in Africa, Mkamba has not only dedicated himself and the organisation he has created to empowering college students, he himself is also the very embodiment of the cause.
In making Startup Safari, Mkamba has laid the groundwork for more such activities that prepare young people for the world of entrepreneurship. He concluded, “We hope to show people what kind of mindset you need to have, how to go around making connections to people; I know that people are ready for this kind of event in Nanjing”.
