Freda Isingoma is the founder and CEO of KIISA, LLC. Freda is an entrepreneur and ex-investment banking professional who has worked in multinational and leading investment institutions in London, New York, and Cape Town. She has experience in establishing successful business initiatives as well as managing investment funds.  This includes her role as a venture capitalist for an award-winning team at Close Brothers Group (UK) an African Investment consultant at Nile Capital Management based in New York.

Key interview highlights:

• There are more voices for SMEs in developed countries like the UK and the USA. There is an absence of mid-cap firms in the African capital market compared to more developed markets in the US and the UK.  In most of Africa, there are either large-cap traditional family-owned businesses that have been around for generations or small-cap businesses often characterized by tiny companies and early-stage start-ups with very few mid-cap firms.
• In addition to access to funding, technical assistance in developing executive teams and roots to market support is necessary to scale-up micro-firms into mid-cap firms.
• Things to keep in mind when starting a new entrepreneurship venture:

1. entrepreneurship does not require 100% certainty before venturing in;
2. become a scholar of your business and make sure that you believe in your idea;
3. make sure that you have enough runway (cash to pay your living expenses) for several months because your business might not be profitable right away and it might even take up to 5 yrs to reach break-even of profitability even if it is cash generative;
4. finding funding is not as swift as imagined, therefore build relationships and a network for support 
5. prioritize your clients and suppliers to serve as brand ambassadors for your businesses--referral is vital for consistent growth of SMEs;
6. a capable executive team/leadership structure is necessary to build the business and drive the mission

• Art is a valuable asset if more people understand the role that art can play in wealth-building as a viable alternative asset to cash and other forms of investments.

Guest contact info/social media: 

LinkedIn : @ Freda Isingoma Instagram : @Freda Isingoma 

Thanks for joining us for another episode of the WTF (Africa Edition) podcast. 

We would love to hear your feedback on the show and how we could improve so please complete this short survey.

If you would like to be a guest or sponsor the podcast, please contact us at [email protected]. 

Where to find us:  Anchor, Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. 

Help us grow:  Please subscribe,  stream or download, leave a rating or review and share your favorite episodes with family, friends, and colleagues. 

Social Media:

Follow the WTF podcast on Instagram and like or follow the WTF Africa Edition podcast on Facebook.

Follow hosts on LinkedIn:  Michelle J. McKenzie  and Lydia Nylander

Join us for the next episode!