Overview
Anhkara Natural is an online marketplace and e-commerce store that helps connect women to celebrate their inner feminity in all stages of radiance, while also building a Community between women across the Diaspora to ancestral rights of passage. Anhkara Natural's products include customizable African waist beads, anklets, bracelets, necklaces, and earrings.
This was a personal project that has transitioned my interests from more than just fine art into so much more, including digital marketing, UI/UX design, advertising, jewelry design, and project management.
Role
CEO, Business Owner, Product Designer, Marketer
Analytics & Advertising, Illustration, Branding, Brand Strategy, Copywriting, Events, Marketing, Photography Direction, Product Design, User Research, Social Media Strategy, Graphic Design
Website www.anhkaranatural.com
Background
With the booming of microbusinesses during the pandemic, it had become more apparent that self-sufficiency has taken the foreground for what can define success.
I am the sole designer, marketer, and face behind the brand.
After a bitter divorce and deciding to lead a life with a new love for myself and my femininity, I founded Anhkara Natural in July 2022. As a team of one, I lead the product creation and design, marketing, and UX/UI strategy for the company. I've been extremely fortunate to have begun this journey and have grown tremendously since beginning this project and business as a way to further my skills and connect and service others in their journeys to becoming their most authentic selves.
Some key achievements that I have listed below:
- Turned an idea into a product. The ability to transform an idea into something much more tangible is a process that is both exhilarating and rewarding. African waist beads are a tool used as a sign of inner strength, fertility, and divine womanhood. In a time when I felt I needed most to be aligned with my center as a woman, I knew I wanted that idea to expand to my customers as a beacon for them as well. Being able to see how much my company has grown is truly sensational.
- Juggled many different hats. Working and building a business in its early stages is not easy. I dedicated many hours of my spare time and weekends conducting research, sketching, testing, and designing the product alongside coordinating and participating in events, creating social media posts and ads, filling out grant applications for the business, and marketing.
Designs
User testing was an iterative process that was conducted at every milestone of the project to identify the biggest pain points in the current version. Once feedback was gathered, I would revisit the prototypes and test them again.
For the brand, I wanted to create a strong, sophisticated, and clean UI that conveyed trustworthiness and progression for future-oriented individuals.
Product Photography
Stationary
Thank you Cards & Promotional Material
Business Cards
