African designers are eager to meet international buyers and are looking for innovative solutions to access markets and promote their products.

I recently had the opportunity to volunteer with the International Trade Centre at the NY NOW and Coterie international trade shows in New York City. The SheTrades Commonwealth project aims to increase economic growth and job creation in Commonwealth countries by enabling the increased participation of women-owned businesses in international trade. The project is funded by the UK Department for International Development and implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC) under the framework of the SheTrades Initiative.

Under this umbrella, I followed a cohort of African artisans and designers presenting their products for the first time in New York City to meet international buyers. It was my first time attending this type of events and it was quite an amazing learning opportunity.

Until then, my experience working with women entrepreneurs had been more in a backstage capacity, coaching budding and established businesswomen in how to develop their leadership and business skills, how to create authentic and profitable connections, and finally how to strengthen their enterprises. The missing piece was accompanying them as they applied these skills in real time in a competitive environment.

For those who have never been to Coterie, the trade show attracts over 200,000 visitors and close to 2000 international apparel and accessories brands present brands each time. It is a prime opportunity for fashion businesses to make the necessary connections to increase their exposure to the global market and make the sales that will sustain them throughout the year.

Following the crop of carefully selected SheTrades African participants – mostly from Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya, a few questions became apparent that I believe addressing would create even more opportunities for entrepreneurs on the continent.

Access for the “Made in Africa” label

How can African businesses participate in the global market if they are not where the action is? Aside from the sponsored attendance of the ITC delegation, there was little representation of African craft at the trade show due in part to the somewhat high attendance costs. Considering the United States has extended the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) to 2025, granting duty-free access to the American market to sub-Saharan African countries, it is a clear missed opportunity when targeted businesses are not able to take advantage of similar avenues to enter the US market. While several aid-based projects such as the SheTrades Initiative support African SMEs in building their businesses and increasing their competitiveness, there is still a long road to get a seat at the table for most African entrepreneurs.

Supporting the “Made differently” label

Several of the businesses selected by ITC for Coterie had fully built in sustainability and innovation as an integral part of their businesses – Lilabare, using post-manufacturing fabric waste for their clothing apparels, Adele Dejak, creating their jewelry from recycled metals or Sanabora, using fish leather in their creations - all Kenyan businesses with a commitment to paying fair wages to their artisans partners. The new African entrepreneur understands very well the necessity to do business differently by building entities that uplift their communities while minimizing the impact on the environment and is doing so creatively. These values, added to a healthy competitive drive, make them excellent examples to promote via these global business highways. This is the edge these young businesses have when competing against major and more establish brands who might not be as adaptable due to their size and heavy processes.

Doing business is not an easy task and African businesses have to deal with many more challenges than the ones cited above. Nonetheless, a few solutions could be offered to entrepreneurs for a chance to play the game and hopefully beat the odds:

Tap the power of networks: African SMEs cannot afford to travel alone – joining national, regional and international networks is essential. Building mutually beneficial relationships is the best way to not only access knowledge to manage their ventures but also increase business leads and visibility.
Diversify financial funding: The usual financial solutions offered by the banking system have not met the needs of African businesses yet. Exploring indigenous crowdfunding sources has been more impactful – micro leasing for micro-businesses and (high-level) women saving cycles are allowing businesswomen to access markets, national or global, and reduce missed opportunities. Additionally, marketplaces themselves could begin offering financing solutions to businesses to facilitate the participation African businesses from specific industries and sectors.

If African SMEs want to go far, wherever key opportunities are today, they will indeed need to go together as the old proverb says. Building the right partnerships, relational or financial, will be the catalyst for their increase participation in the global market.