With $1,000 which she pulled out of her savings, she started her journey. All she had? 20 white tablecloths, 100 chair covers, some navy blue sashes, and an Instagram account with no photos. She had no client base to start with as she knew nobody else outside of her work colleagues and a handful of Cameroonians she hung out with from time to time. She had no money to advertise and the fear of failure loomed over her head.
A few months into starting her business, she had not gotten a single client and was about to quit. She got in touch with two other Cameroonians in the states, who proved to be her support system and encouraged her to not give up. True enough she got a call later from a company that needed decoration for a corporate event. Her very first gig! She was able to have that on the recommendation of a Cameroonian working in the company.
Luckily for her, the company was fine with the white and the navy blue; the only two colors that she had. She had a few other clients that first year and when she ran the numbers at the end, she had made a small profit of $2,000.
We here at Poise have made it a mission to encourage everyone of our followers to pick up a side hustle especially for those who are not able to meet their financial needs and also those who do not get enough satisfaction from the jobs they currently hold. Nora is one of those people we found to be juggling her regular job with a side hustle. We got in touch with Nora and asked her a few questions about herself and her work-life.
PoiseSocial: WHEN DID YOU MOVE FROM CAMEROON TO CANADA?
Nora: 2011
Poisesocial: WHAT LEVEL OF EDUCATION DID YOU COMPLETE BEFORE LEAVING CAMEROON?
Nora: I went to University of Buea for Law and then to University of Yaounde II for my maitrise in Business Law
Poisesocial: DID YOU HAVE ANY TROUBLE INTEGRATING INTO THE CANADIAN WORKFORCE WITH CAMEROONIAN DEGREES?
Canada likes the term "Canadian Experience" lol.
I wanted to pursue Law here as well and besides the huddles that comes with credential assessments and my degrees not having any strong bearings here, there was also the issue of difference in jurisdiction - a major shift. I won't even go into the process and most importantly the tuition cost for that here.
I didn't mind starting over and pursue corporate law, however, the cost for that deterred me. I decided to pursue my second love - Banking & Finance
I started off working as a CSA with A US online Bank and worked there throughout my stay in school. Doing both full time.once I graduated I moved on to another Bank and this time a Canadian Bank.
PoiseSocial: WHEN DID YOU START THE DECOR AND EVENT PLANNING BUSINESS?
Nora: In 2015 and before that I'd just do house events pro bono and also help friends and family plan their events. I still do pro bono events.
HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE ON YOUR TEAM?
Hmmmm...right now believe it or not, most times it is just me, my mum and husband. My sis in law and her hubby helps from time to time and I do pay 3 other workers sometimes depending on the size of the event.
WHAT IF SOMEONE BOOKS YOU ON A DAY YOU HAVE TO WORK?
Good question lol. I am fortunate to have a very flexible work schedule. 99% of events here fall on weekends and I work one weekend each month. If an event falls on a day I work, I have ample time to schedule that day off work or trade it off with a colleague. It is amazing how so far this has worked very nicely for me.
PoiseSocial: WHY THE DECOR BUSINESS EVEN AFTER YOU GRADUATED FROM SCHOOL AND LANDED A GOOD JOB.
I Love it! I love the arts - from drawing, painting, poetry, dance etc u name it. I had a penchant for making a space look different or what my Brother in law would call "the Nora Effect" lol. It was like 2nd nature to me. I did get a lot of encouragement and push from my Cousin I look up to so much - Brenda Elung. It wasn't until the Cameroonian Association here in Kitchener Waterloo decided to do their first annual party and delegated the role for decor coordination to me that it dawned on me to monetize the idea. That didn't happen until the year after that.
- TeamPoise