eBusiness Weekly
We round off a remarkable women’s month by showcasing some of the unsung heroines within the Zimbabwean media space. I am not sure how many of our men have watched that larger than life movie, “The Devil Wears Prada”. In one of her most remarkable and lethal roles, Meryl Streep plays Anna Wintour, the indomitable long time Editor-in-Chief of Vogue Magazine.
In my opinion Meryl Streep absolutely nails that role. But “The Devil Wears Prada” gives us a glimpse of all the “drama” that happens in the fashion industry. We got to learn that Cerulean is actually a shade of blue and that the fashion industry employs millions of people.
Anna Wintour who is played by Meryl Streep in this movie, is well known for her acerbic attitude towards her staff and to some extent industry colleagues. This has earned her the nickname “Nuclear Wintour”. Having been at the helm of the iconic Vogue Magazine for over four decades she has found herself in a “pickle” this year.
Her crime sheet include, among other things, not advancing the causes of black minorities in the magazine. To her credit, Wintour has acknowledged that, Vogue has been “hurtful and intolerant and not done enough to promote black staff and designers.
Despite the negative aura that surrounds Wintour’s persona, we cannot help admire her prowess in maintaining a strong Vogue Brand. Vogue was founded in 1892 and has 23 international versions with a readership of about 1,2 million every month. This feat could only have been reached by Wintour who is generally known for “shaking things up”.
However, Wintour’s huge success with Vogue is hardly a true depiction of how women have fared within the media industry. Around the world, women are far less likely than men to be seen in the media.
According to a research conducted in 2015, women made up a mere percent of experts featured in news stories and 37 percent of reporters telling stories globally. A quick perusal of the major newspapers in Zimbabwe show a heavy bias towards male reporters and generally male opinions.
It is against this background that I decided to profile four magazine and are influencing different conversations in their respective industries.
The CEO Magazine
Not only has Mapungwana, managed to get the attention of the elusive Zimbabwean chief executive officers (CEOs), she has managed to ensure that their insights and thoughts reach markets that would otherwise not been in their circles. After completing her Master’s Degree in the United Kingdom (UK) Mapungwana felt that she needed to create a platform where thought leaders could share their knowledge with others in Zimbabwe.
However, establishing the Magazine has not been smooth sailing. A consummate “quality fanatic and attention to detail freak” Mapungwana, decided that she would have the magazine printed in South Africa. Though there are inherent costs associated with this, the quality of the CEO Magazine is a manifestation of this attention to detail.
In addition, lack of start-up capital and delays in company registration, did not deter her from achieving her goals. Mapungwana notes that, “While I had the vision, I did not have the capital”. Thanks to her persevering spirit, the CEO Magazine is a media industry heavyweight publication, which has featured many prominent thought leaders such as Douglas Mboweni and Robin Vela to name just a few. I still remain in awe of the quality of this magazine.
Fempreneur Magazine
Pearl is a true embodiment of what encouraging words can do to a child’s future. A non-assuming comment from her teacher, Hanscombe, when she was at Amandas Primary School, would come true many decades later. Hanscombe had simply noticed Pearl’s prowess in English and recommended that she becomes a writer.
After dabbling in career of auditing and accounting at Ernest and Young, Pearl finally found her “mojo” by starting the Fempreneur Magazine. With an initial investment from her children’s pocket money, she started by teaching herself the various intricacies of magazine publishing.
She roped in her cousin who is a graphic designer and they have been together ever since. Her love for female empowerment and seeing entrepreneurs grow, coupled with a love to motivate others have seen her riding initial start-up shocks such as lack of funding. Fempreneurs Magazine showcases women entrepreneurship within different sectors. The magazine relies on a network of contributors for its content. Catch a glimpse of this magazine on http://entrepreneurs.co.zw/category/entrepreneurs/fempreneurs-magazine/
Sheba Magazine
Raised in the Eastern Highlands by her trailblazing maternal grandmother, Nyaradzo found solace in reading books at a very young age. Such is a huge repertoire of books she has read, that on her first visit to New York, she did not need to find directions as she had an in-depth knowledge of the city through the various publications she had already consumed.
This rich background of being raised by strong “Ndau women” led to her to be aggressive “go getter attitude. “
Though initially she had to grapple with insecurities surrounding the possible failure of the magazine, she has remained focused.
The initial funding for the magazine was acquired through Bootstrapping. The magazine has surpassed its initial target of 8 000 readers and has since gone regional. Sheba Magazine also has a consistent advertising portfolio which assists in running the magazine.
Mavindidze, has at her disposal an array of well celebrated regional and international contributors. She also admits to being meticulous with seemingly small things such as grammar. She admits that this “pickiness” has allowed Sheba Magazine to maintain its high quality standards within the industry.
Sheba Magazine is making its way to becoming a leading Afrocentric thought leader magazine working to amplify and encourage black excellence.” The publication tackles different areas such as politics, economics, technological and other pertinent topics of our day. The online version of this magazine is still under construction but request a copy from [email protected]
Online Wedding Magazine
A true daughter of the large dormitory town of Chitungwiza. Gurire is a true embodiment of what “Chitown” folk are known for.
This young stunning founder of Svitsa wedding Magazine is chic, glamour, guts, grit, determination and vision all wrapped into one package.
Gurire became fascinated by computers at a young age. As she grew up she decided to assemble her own computer by picking used parts. She even had the audacity to teach computers to some local schools without an official computer qualification.
In her own words Gurire says she is inspired by “beautiful love stories” thus the motivation to start the first ever wedding online magazine.
This magazine is thus meant to show case everything beautiful about the Zimbabwean wedding Industry and experiences. With the wedding industry heavily biased towards production and service offerings, Svitsa Magazine is a breadth of fresh air as it explores the back end of this industry’s value chain.
With a single laptop, a love for photography and an eye for good content, she tapped into this industry. This magazine is growing and is becoming a formidable force among a vast array respected wedding magazines. Visit Svitsa Facebook page to take a glimpse of this exquisite magazine.
Lessons Learnt
This remarkable array of women has managed to follow their dreams through a combination of self-funding their projects, determination and a belief in their products.
It is also extraordinary to note that these incredible women have managed to penetrate the otherwise male dominated media space in Zimbabwe. I will sign off with a quote from Pearl. “We have survived through it all and we approach each challenge with as much enthusiasm as we do each victory.” Well done girls!
Joseline Sithole is the Founder of Southern Africa Development Consultants(SODECO). Get in touch on 0773634062
