Navigating the tough world of retail business

Making global headlines this week were a number of stories about well-known high street retail businesses that are finding it tough right now. Some are closing stores and restructuring their companies in order to stay afloat and relevant in a changing marketplace. The same goes for a number of leading restaurant chains that once flooded global high streets, but are now rethinking their businesses and their strategies. Africa’s retail scene is going through it’s own challenges, with some economies experiencing really tough times, and others growing fast. For the woman entrepreneur building a niche retail brand on the continent, it has been traditionally tough to break into some of these retail markets. But with the growth of online retail, an exciting new generation of proudly African retail brands is emerging, tapping into a rapidly growing global and pan-African consumer base. Lionesses of Africa will be discussing this exciting topic at the World Retail Congress in Amsterdam in May next year - look out for news on that soon!