Today we are starting a new section where we will be interviewing famous Business Personalities
from all over. Look out for some more in the next few months.
For our first one we will be interviewing Fiona Wainwright.
She is a Entrepreneur and Publisher of the Coffee News Bluff & Surrounds Publication.
We asked her 10 questions, let's see what she has to say.
1. Where were you born?
I was born in Sunnyside, Pretoria and lived there for almost 8yrs before moving to sunny Durban and have been here ever since.
2. What encouraged you to become an entrepreneur?
I was looking for a business that I would be good at, could work from home, set my own hours and still be able to go out and meet new people. Networking is a big part of a successful business and working for myself allows me the freedom to do a lot of networking and enable me to grow my business successfully.
3. Tell us about Coffee News?
Wow...... Coffee News has an amazing concept. It is a free, weekly paper and is a franchise which started in Canada in 1988. It very quickly spread to all over the world with it being published in 50 countries and in 7 different languages. We distribute from restaurants, coffee shops, take aways and waiting areas of businesses. It is the worlds largest restaurant publication.
It is printed on an A3 creamy yellow paper, is printed double sided in black only. Coffee News is entertaining, with amazing facts, interesting trivia, comical stories, horoscopes, competitions and a special "What's Happening" column for local events..... something for everyone.
We also advertise solely one business per business category which means that competitors are locked out.
4. Your advice to other entrepreneurs and salespeople in the world
It takes a lot of hard work to start your own business. The trick is to persevere and stick with it, market yourself properly and widely. Do not give up because at the end of the day you will reap the benefits of your hard work and make it all worthwhile.
5. What do you do for fun and to relax?
It's quite simple actually. To relax I love going to the beach and watching the sea. I like taking time out to go for a weekend away to a beach resort or somewhere close to the sea. The sea is so mesmerizing and washes all ones troubles away.
For fun, I love to dance. It helps to motivate the body and mind to carry on and it's good exercise to.
Each day is different but in a week, I go from putting an edition together, to meeting with prospective advertisers, to networking and compiling adverts, which plays a huge role in a successful Coffee News, as they have to be structured correctly for each business. Delivering Coffee News to all the distribution outlets is a big part of the week too. It is great to catch up with all the restaurant and coffee shop owners. It is very important to have a good relationship with them. You never know when they will through some business your way.
7. Are you a member of any networking groups? If so which one's?
Yes, I belong to two different networking groups. On a Tuesday I meet up with the members of our BNI Chapter (Business Networking International) for a breakfast networking meeting. BNI is an international networking business which helps people grow their businesses through referrals.
I belong to another networking group which is called BBA ( Bluff Business Alliance). There we also network and pass referrals. We are also aimed at improving the Bluff, making our status known and helping out the charities on the Bluff. At the same time we help each other grow their businesses. With both groups, it is like having breakfast with your friends at the same time as giving each other business or referrals.
8. What makes a good advert?
A good advert is one that stands out and attracts the readers attention. We do that by using eye catching graphics, a good catch phrase, a solution to their needs and if possible we offer a discount too.
9. Do you also design adverts and business cards and if so what does that entail?
Yes, I design the adverts myself. This is where my creative side comes into effect. I just love being creative and in today's age of technology, it seems this is the way to do it. It is the same for the business cards that I design as well. It just gets the creative juices flowing. The business cards are a side line that I provide which includes designing the business cards and having them printed all at one cost. Of course, I put together a few drafts of both adverts and the business cards for the client to choose from and once I get the go ahead then I can proceed to complete the job. It is all very exciting and rewarding.
10. A little birdie told me you also do photography tell us about your love for photography, what pictures do you take?
Hahaha...... I wonder who told you that? Yes, I love photography. It is absolutely exhilarating to see what you can capture in a single photo. I have loved photography since my school days but never followed dream as the equipment at that time was too expensive and you needed your own to take courses in photography. I have since been able to set myself up with a very good SLR digital camera.
My favorite topics to photograph are wildlife and still photographs. I love the concepts you can come up with and the amazing colours one can achieve too. I also enjoy photographing people as there are so many different expressions one can pick up and also so many different angles one can capture too.
Well that was a very interesting interview Readers. What an inspiring lady.
Well if you need any advertising or business cards you sure know who to call.
Coffee News is also on Facebook so why not visit their Fan Page and Like It
Just click on the link here - Coffee News Bluff & Surrounds
Fly high, Fly free
Fred Felton
Falcon's Cove Consulting
Keynote Speaker - IT Consultant - Biz Analyst
email: falconscove@gmail.com
cell: 076-977-5788
twitter: @fredfelton
email him for one of his Social Networking Seminars or Talks which he does countrywide
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