The Female Founder Effect with Monalisa Molefe
Female Founder Name: Monalisa Molefe - Artrepreneur
Business Name: Artform Factory
Industry: Fine Arts
Instagram Handle: @monamolefe
What inspired you to start your business?
I actually never thought I would be an entrepreneur or at least I didn’t think I would be one at age 24. I had a once in a lifetime opportunity to acquire an already existing business called Artform Factory , and so my entrepreneurial/ artreprenuerial journey began.
When did you start?
I started in the summer of September 2016
Why this specific industry.
LOL my name is Monalisa so I suppose the arts were going to play a role in my life path at some point. I do come from an artistic family though , so from early childhood I had always been surrounded by various artforms dance, theatre, music and fine arts and so I’ve always had an eye and understanding for the arts. Artform Factory previously offered bulk standard picture framing services. Upon my new position in the business I chose to move into investment art by repositioning and offering highly niche , skills and knowledge driven service of conservation and preservation framing for investment art. People may think a frame is just a frame and serves the same purpose but not really, the materials , tools and processes for conservation framing are different to that of standard picture framing. This type of service is targeted at galleries, museums, hotels with art collections, and individual private art collectors.
What obstacles did you face starting up, and how did you overcome them?
My industry did not find me to be credible as I had never worked in the space before. Nor do I have a PHD in fine arts or philosophy LOL. All I had was my luxury brand management experience as well as my business management post graduate qualification. I overcame it by focusing on executional excellence and service delivery which were part of the main values I operated on whilst in the luxury industry. This is the one thing I knew how to do well, so I did just that for the clients that dared to give me a chance. The rest is history.
What’s the most valuable lesson you’ve learned since starting your business?
That in entrepreneurship , people do business with people not brands. It’s all about relationships that are built over time and earning each other’s trust. Relationships are two ways, so I hold my clients accountable too in as much as I’m actually the one providing the service. ‘The customer is always right’ is not a saying that works in my business.
Why work for yourself when there’s stability in working for others?
Mine was purely based on opportunity. Growing up I was taught that opportunities are timed . I didn’t want to miss this one and given my age at the time I did weigh my options knowing very well that I was still young so if the entrepreneurship journey didn’t work out I would still be young enough to enter back into the job market before the age of 30. Thankfully I have not needed to go back. I advocate for being employed though, as I don’t believe everyone is meant to be an entrepreneur.
What is the one characteristic that you possess that has helped make you so successful?
I’m resourceful, and I know how to network and make connections with people and I enjoy connecting other people outside of my own benefit. I believe in a cross pollination of networks . I’ll never hold back a contact if I know it will help someone to get where they need to.
What’s your guiding business philosophy?
There’s only plan A and plan B. I’ve always filtered to two options when drafting viability of ideas and a vision; the moment I want to continue down the alphabet it means that I have not clarified my objective and vision of what I want to achieve, so I would rather go back to the drawing board of that but I will never continue to plan C, D, E, F etc.. Thus the saying ‘If Plan A didn't work, the alphabet has 25 more letters! Stay cool’. Doesn’t work for me.
At what moment did this venture become real for you?
When I lost all the existing clients of the business I had acquired. Shortly after having bought the business over 90% of the existing clients never came back for the services yet they all had good track records as returning clients, according to the books and due diligence we did on the business. In less than 6months I lost most of them and I only had two people consistently return.
I took away two lessons here, firstly that people do business with people. In that moment it meant nothing that the brand name had been in the industry for 10 years – those clients continued to come back because of the relationship they had with the previous owner. I also humbly learnt that it was not personal, they just preferred her based on the relationship they had with her.
The second lesson is that I used that demotivating moment as an opportunity to rebrand and develop my own language and new clientele that I wanted to service. So in a way it helped me to start on a clean slate and I’m grateful for that today. I love everything about my brand and clients currently .
What is the most challenging part about being an entrepreneur (ARTREPRENUER)?
Having to wear many hats especially at the beginning before establishing a stable team. At some point I was a sales person, admin lady, HR, and accountant at one go.
What makes it all worth it?
For me it’s the excitement from my clients when they receive the works framed or finally hung in their homes. This is the part that makes me tick, the part that makes me feel whole and purposeful. It is a joy I cannot explain to have contributed to someone else’s happiness. To also know that I am needed even if it is in a small way. Investment fine arts is a big world but a small community that understand and need my kind of service.
What advice do you have for someone just starting out?
You have to stay the course and be consistent. Forward is forward even if it’s slow and steady. I also encourage them build their own board of advisors , people with different skills and thought processes to help you along the way on the days that you feel a slump or brain fog .
How do you define success?
Having a good night’s rest . Going to sleep peacefully with no guilt. I take this very seriously. Without a good night’s rest you aren’t healthy meaning you can’t get up and show up fully for yourself, your customers, your employees etc. I am successful by ensuring I have a good nights rest, then I know i can be the best version of me for the world every new day.
What did you do differently from the rest of us?
I’m attracted to and interested in weird, wonderful and highly niche things. I’ve worked in watching making and writing instrument industries , and now I’m in framing. I suppose I can say I go for business UNUSUAL.
What do you believe is the female founder effect?
We women can add a finesse to just about anything we do or touch or involve ourselves in. Isn’t that just wonderful? And it will rarely ever look the same with the next woman . We all have our own magic and way of making what we do look really good, even on the bad days.
What do you believe is the most impactful and immediate action society needs to move closer to Generation Equality goals?
My heart tugs at the boy child in particular. If society can work together to relook at their current foundations and upbringing , we have a chance to pivot and change the current negative narrative of men. I believe it all starts at the foundation and their childhood upbringing.
What is your superpower?
I have grown and developed such strong self awareness and I’m currently enjoying it.
What centres you?
In people, my family and key close friends. In activities and way of living it would be yoga , meditation and feng shui.
What is your next adventure?
Art advisory and private buying for clients. Watch this space.
Best advice for female founders
Focus on what you are interested in, have a tunnel vision and don’t get distracted by people that give unsolicited advice when they don’t have any insight on what you are doing and why you’re doing it.