Meet the board of the African Influencer Awards

Simba Jemwa, Sunday Life Correspondent

LAST year, 27-year-old media owner, Nicolette Mdluli and her Afrluent Media Agency launched the inaugural African Influencer Awards.

The awards were hosted by DJ Kiri Kiri and Khekhe Wabangane and winners included Pink and Purple, Freddy ‘Sozinio’ Jackson and Brayden Heart, while Rose GIFT Foundation co-founding director, Patience Tarumbwa revealed her life’s story and challenges she has faced.

This year, nominations have already begun and this week Sunday Life takes a look at the board members that make the awards a reality.

Nicolette B Mdhluli (Chairperson)

Nicolette B Mdhluli is a digital marketing consultant and strategist, CEO of Afrluent Media PVT LTD, Chairperson of the African Influencer Awards Board, Secretary of the Afrluencer Women’s Network, and Chief Editor of Afrluencer Magazine, Zimbabwe. She is passionate about creating a platform for young entrepreneurs to build communities around their brands.

She is a young, ambitious woman who started a digital marketing and advertising agency in Zimbabwe’s most challenging circumstances. Nicolette B Mdhluli has been assisting small businesses with online growth since 2017.

For her clients, she has developed professional, exciting, and result- oriented campaigns. All this started right before she finished her final year at university, as a marketing major. Her research project on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) Branding and online brand building led to the birth of a passion that has over the years developed into a recognised business.

Zak Hawa

Zak Hawa is a director of Fazak Africa. He joined the family business in 1993 and has been pivotal to its success. Zak is the vice president of The Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers Association, the Chairman of The Bulawayo Publicity Association as well as being the Chairman of the newly founded Bulawayo Revival Trust. He was also appointed earlier this year to the Megafest Advisory Board.

Dr Lucky Mlilo

Dr Mlilo is a business leader and sports administrator of note. He is the managing director of Omnibit Investments PL. He is also the founder and president of the Professionals Business Association of Zimbabwe (PROBAZ), chairman of the Squash Rackets Association of Zimbabwe (SRAZ) and president of the Squash Federation of Africa (SFA) as well as an Executive Committee Member of the World Squash Federation (WSF).

Dr Mlilo is also a Board Member and Adjudicator of a few other local and international organisations.

Felistas Sakone

Felistas is a Business Development Manager at Kya-Global Enterprises. She is an innovative strategic leader with expertise in transforming business concepts into high – impact results. She is a result oriented corporate expert with over ten years progressive experience in business development and human capital development.

She is a holder of an Executive Master in Business Administration (NUST), BCom Business Management (UNISA), Master Facilitator (ACS) and a certified Assessor (ACS). As a visionary and strategic professional, she finds pleasure in transforming organisations by identifying opportunities and turning them into business through implementation of growth strategies that create value for all stakeholders of the company.

Apart from Kya-Global Enterprises Felistas dedicates much of her time in grooming and developing people to reach their competence levels in business development, marketing, business management and leadership amongst other management disciplines. Felistas is happily married to Lambert, and the couple is blessed with two beautiful children.

 

Velile Dube is an avid marketing practitioner with a passion for relationship building and networking. A disruptive thinker and innovator who is gainfully employed as a Client Manager for the Southern Region at Zim Trade, Zimbabwe’s trade promotion organisation responsible for growing Zimbabwe’s exports. Velile went to Rhodes Estate Preparatory School and Plumtree High School. He is a 2016 graduate fellow of past President Obama’s Mandela Washington Fellowship at Drake University in Iowa, USA. He majored in Marketing at the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Chartered Institute Of Management and Leadership, National University Of Science and Technology and International Business Management Institute, Berlin. Germany.

Velile aspires to be a chartered Marketer and a doctor In Marketing at the age of 40. A seasoned speaker. trainer, presenter and Director of ceremonies, he is a member of Toastmasters International where he was awarded the Competent Communicator (CC) & Competent Leader (CL) status in Des Moines, Iowa, America. He is a member of the Bulawayo Chapter of Junior Chamber International (JCI). He is the southern region board chairperson of Customer Care Association of Zimbabwe (CCAZ), sits on the Seventh Day Adventist Church Zimbabwe West Union Conference (ZWUC) Publishing board, is a past Matabeleland regional board member Of Marketers Association of Zimbabwe (MAZ) and is the Director of Projects at the newly constituted board of Adventists in Services & Industry (AS’).

He has a passion for fashion and clothing, which explains him being the Founder and Brand Ambassador of Ideal Black Man Couture (IBMC). His love for mentorship and grooming future leaders has seen him being the CO-Founder and Board member Of Elevate Trust, and a mentor of the BOOST FELLOWSHIP Zimbabwe. He qualified in the Top 2 for the Bulawayo province under the CBZ Bank Young Entrepreneurs Programme (YEP).

Velile has a soft spot for children and education. He is currently in the process of setting up a trust CHILD DREAMS FOUNDATION (CDF) whose mandate Will be rehabilitation of rural schools in Zimbabwe. His passion for public relations and Marketing informs his dreams of one day spearheading aggregate foreign direct investments for Zimbabwe through synergies and partnerships.

Anne Bonnet

She is the owner/designer for The Zuri Collection. She also does some side work for Femina Garments having previously worked there for 14 years.

@RealSimbaJemwa