the founders' stories :
the
festival story
Coming from very different perspectives, Trudy Arnold, a prominent female entrepreneur and Founder for the School of Success, focused on empowering and funding young female brilliant but needy students and Kwame A.A Opoku, a Keynote Speaker, Social Entrepreneur, and Digital Marketer – both saw troubling trends.
Women around the continent were narrowing the gender gap in entrepreneurship and finding paths to launching more businesses in industrialized and developing nations.
On average, more women globally are taking advantage of educational gains and perceived economic opportunities to start businesses that can pave the way for financial independence.
Entrepreneurship increasingly has been recognized as critical to economic development around the world, especially among poorer nations. Female entrepreneurs, in particular, can contribute substantially to economic growth and help reduce poverty, and this was the preamble that facilitated the creation of this platform.
This generation of young African women is the most ambitious yet. They are eager to build industries, reform societies, save lives, rewrite history, and transform the continent; of such a breed is Trudy Arnold.
A graduate from Ghana’s premier university, the University of Ghana, Legon with a BA Degree and a Master’s Degree from Imperial College, London, Msc Management, a former Miss Malaika Ghana (2nd Runner Up) and CEO of Studio 7 Beauty Lounge, one of Ghana’s fastest growing beauty brands, Trudy Asamaniwa Arnold, is a purposeful and ambitious young woman who does not settle for anything mediocre.
Trudy is also the Founder of The School For Success Scholarship Program, a non-profit platform that funds young, brilliant females who seek to add value to their lives through formal or vocational education to achieve their seemingly far-fetched dreams.
She is also the Co-Founder and Lead Curator of the WE Festival Africa - a unique event dedicated to supporting women entrepreneurs who are in the trenches of building their business.
A staunch Christian with a genuine love for God’s work, Trudy inculcates core Christian principles in her businesses as well as her personal life. She believes that every young woman deserves the platform to fully realise her potential and become the best version of herself.
Being the head of a plush and luxurious yet affordable unisex beauty lounge at one of the busiest business centres in Accra, Trudy envisions radically changing the beauty industry in Ghana. She believes in giving true value for money and as such, sees to it that her clients are treated with the utmost care and respect at her establishment.
"Aspire to Inspire"
Trudy Arnold
KWAME A.A. OPOKU
#kwamespeaks
Kwame A.A Opoku is a Global Business Keynote Speaker, TV Host, Brand Architect, Serial Entrepreneur, Digital Marketer and Influencer. As an entrepreneur, he is CEO of Mary & Mary Global partners, a leading communications marketing and PR firm with a bank of super creative and talented minds connecting, informing and creating inspiring work, he is also the Co-Founder and Lead Curator of WE FESTIVAL AFRICA a unique platform dedicated to supporting women entrepreneurs who are in the trenches of building their business.
He is the Co-Founder of Idea Factory Africa, a global African Community and a Social Enterprise, welcoming young people from every discipline and culture who seek to influence the world through NOVEL IDEAS.
Kwame is a dynamic millennial who brings international experience to driving transformation and youth empowerment in Africa. He has worked with various institutions, private corporations and non-governmental organisations to create innovative platforms that use corporate social responsibility resources to drive sustainable impact. He is currently the Vice Chair, West Africa for the Young CEOs Business Forum, one of the World’s leading Organizations, he is head of all YCBF related projects within the West African region, making Him Head of Operations in 16 Countries
