I met this vibrant Queen at an all women's coaching session earlier this year and I've been mesmerised by her stunning products ever since.
Join us as we get to know Tanya in Part Two of our fellow black female entrepreneur interview series. Remember to be impressive, be a boss, be someone who elevates other women and #supportlocal.
Tell us a little about yourself and what you do.
Hi! My name is Tanya. I am the founder of Krowns Africa. We specialise in headgear and custom designs made with African Print. I am also a self proclaimed activist for all things that matter.
How old is your business now?
My business is just over 2 years old now.
How did you come up with the idea of and name for your business?
Initially my business was going to be focused on headwraps, thus it was “Crowning by Tanya.” Honestly, we went through several name changes and ended up with “Krowns by Tanya”, however, in the last year or so we did some really amazing things and we now have a distributor in America thus “Krowns Africa” because it has gone beyond just me and the business now has its own “personality".
What makes your business unique?
Some of my clients ask if Krowns is actually not a therapy brand (haha) because we focus on how our customer is doing and make sure that everyone that encounters us leaves feeling validated and feeling like something has been taken off their shoulders.
Are you a solo-entrepreneur or how many members does your team currently comprise?
There are 4 part-time people that work with and for Krowns Africa. We also have Norbet Elnar (who created our Logo). He is an absolute creative genius and is in charge of our branding.
How do you market your business, and which methods have been most successful for you?
We haven’t done any ads yet... however, working with local influencers has been the most successful to date.
What does a typical day look like for you? And how many hours, on average, do you work daily?
I wake up between 8am and 9am (unless I have early meetings). (I then) Call family, tidy up, make deliveries and go fabric shopping (if I need to). I start sewing after lunch... take a nap at 3pm... Wake up, eat dinner and then sew, cut, design until 3am. Sleep from 3am and Repeat.
I work as much as I can but if I’m not feeling too great then I give myself a break.
How has being an entrepreneur affected your life?
All my relationships have been strained one way or the other, except for my relationships with my friends who are also entrepreneurs and who understand the pressures that come with bringing an idea into reality.
Time becomes a social construct when you are an entrepreneur because this is not a job/career this becomes who you are.
If you could go back in time and start up your business all over again, what would you do differently?
I would be more fearless! It took a while for my business to really gain traction and this is simply because I was feeding my insecurities into my business.
What is one piece of advice you’d like give to someone just starting out?
Believe that you are the best to ever do it! Believe that you have something to say with your brand that the world has never heard before.
Where can we find your business on social media?
Facebook page link: https://www.facebook.com/krownsbytanya/
Instagram handle: krowns_sa