Black Young Professionals Network (BYP) are holding a Business Bootcamp with eBay aimed at assisting those wishing to start up a business. One of the speakers is a fantastic example of a black young professional, winner of the eBay for Business Awards, Patricia Otoa Ayo, the Founder or Op Chic Boutique will be sharing her story of how with just £80 in savings, bags of enthusiasm and confidence in her business model, she created OP Clothing from her mother’s home in 2011.
Online retail has grown exponentially over the last year, providing economic opportunity for those who’ve been most impacted by store closures and redundancies during the pandemic. Whether it’s starting up a side hustle or creating a new revenue stream while shop doors are shut, people all over the UK have pivoted their ways of working to keep afloat in a year of hardship.
Starting a business provides and empowers us to have economic opportunities that aren’t always available through traditional employment. Entrepreneurship is not an easy ride, and with black founders having unique challenges compared to counterparts, it’s essential to know and continually develop your business understanding to become a true leader.
Join this session to uncover the steps to scale your business, from ideation, to materialisation, to growth. You’ll hear first-hand experiences from eBay sellers and employees on the highs and lows of setting up and running an e-commerce business. No matter what step you’re at, you’ll leave with a clearer approach on how to find the right support and how to grow your business to the next level.
Key takeaways include:
- Learn 5 key considerations when scaling your business online
- Understand how to find external support for business growth
- Develop strategies to overcome the challenges of entrepreneurship
Tickets for Black Young Professionals Network Business Bootcamp with eBay
The Business Bootcamp takes place on the 8th of July from 17:30 – 18:30. Tickets are free both for Black Young Professionals Network members and non-members.
Speakers
Patricia Otoa Ayo, Founder, Op Chic Boutique
Patricia Otoa Ayo has taken her passion for vibrant clothing all the way from her mother’s veranda in Uganda to a thriving eBay store in the UK. With a degree in Information Technology, Patricia started her career as an IT instructor for a Canadian not-for-profit organisation, but it wasn’t long before entrepreneurial life came calling. With just £80 in savings, bags of enthusiasm and confidence in her business model, she created OP Clothing from her mother’s home in 2011.
Patricia had a vision: combine quality, traditional fabrics with modern western designs to attract a new generation of clients to the vibrancy of African clothing. Keen to give something back to her community, Patricia also supported local women by selling their crafts and paper beads as accessories to her clothing, at no additional cost.
Wahaaj Shabbir, Sneakers Category Manager, eBay
Wahaaj is the Sneakers Category Manager at eBay UK and is obsessed with all things sneaker related! He has grown up buying and selling on eBay and spent a number of years as a business seller himself, which has given Wahaaj a greater appreciation of the challenges faced by both buyers and sellers and a focus is to keep the customer at the heart of everything.
Mariam Tayeb, Acquisition Manager – Fulfillment & Logistics, eBay
Mariam has a strong category management background within the Home industry, having started her career at Wayfair and most recently in eBay before moving to a newly created role in their Fulfillment & Logistics Team.
In between these roles, Mariam set up a business called Rugs & Rooms with her sister, which still trades on eBay and has given her invaluable insight into growing a business and how a marketplace can support it.
Sarah Bryant, Category Lead, eBay
Sarah Bryant joined eBay in 2020 to lead the newly created ‘Pro-Trader’ team. In this exciting move to eBay UK, Sarah and her team have expanded the range of sellers that eBay manages on the platform. For 2021 Sarah’s remit has expanded to solve for SMBs on the platform in a move that showcases how dedicated eBay is in supporting this seller profile.
Prior to this, Sarah spent most of her career at Amazon in a multitude of leadership roles across the EU and NA but also dipped her toes in FMCG and discount retail.
