Lorna Mashiba, an entrepreneur with a vision to become Tanzania’s leading art gallery  — Lionesses of Africa

Tell us a little about your team

Rangi Gallery’s founding team was a small group of five (5) extraordinary people working part-time while driving their own very established careers, but who assisted greatly in bringing the Gallery to fruition. They led me through all the stages of the development cycle with their combined knowledge, thinking, driven by innovation and bringing my idea to life. And for this, I will forever be indebted to them, because they helped lift this off the ground after 10 years of procrastination. They helped in making sure I walked before I could fly.

Rangi recently hired and partnered with its newest member who will be serving as the Gallery Manager, Ms Asteria Malinzi. A fine arts photographer, she completed her BA(Hons) in Business Management and Marketing at the University of Derby, the United Kingdom in 2012. She went on to pursue photography and relocated to Cape Town, South Africa in 2015 where she graduated from Cape Town School of Photography. Since graduating she has participated in several exhibitions in South Africa, Tanzania, Kenya and Egypt.

Share a little about your entrepreneurial journey. And do you come from an entrepreneurial background?

I live and I breathe art. My love for art has been present since I was a child and it grew as my exposure around the world increased especially during the time I spent in India.  I spent six years in India and during my stay, the vibrancy of colour and creativity in the Indian culture and art scene opened new avenues of my mind. Whether it in woodwork, painting, watercolours, jewellery design, and the experience amplified my interest in art. My inspiration ignited, and reignited, through the different art galleries I visited and my level of understanding behind the culture of the pieces. 

As a little girl, I remember spending countless hours drawing, sketching and impressing my teachers with my artistic hand. Subjects like mathematics and physics were not subjects that moved me and frankly, I was not competent in them either. Unfortunately, given the cultural preferences and the generation I grew up in, I was unable to pursue an education that would position me to be immersed in the art scene, however, my love for art remained within me eagerly waiting to burst out.

I started with collecting art pieces from around the world and through my exposure and collection, my enthusiasm to start an art gallery grew to the point where I would rather starve in order to buy a very beautiful piece of art, with the knowledge that one day this piece of art would be worth a lot of money. Furthermore, I can be quite particular and can spend years looking for a specific piece. So that is basically what motivated and inspired me to start the business. 

My first gallery – yes, I had a gallery prior Rangi – was not very successful given that there was a lack of awareness in art in Tanzania then and the partnership formed to operate this gallery did not work out too well. Therefore, after a couple of years of running, we had to shut it down.  It was a painful experience (emotionally and financially) yet, there were many lessons I learned and carried on into the birth of Rangi.

Coming from an entrepreneurial background, the failed gallery did not put me down for too long. My father, despite being a civil servant, had several side businesses; my mother would supervise and champion my father’s side businesses as well as manage her own little projects – you see my mother has an eye for quality and was good at spotting material (from clothing to construction materials to you name it) and transforming and allocating it to the right clientele. And on top of that, she ran a livestock farming business. Talk about super-mom, huh? 

I definitely got the fearless spirit from my parents as well as my openness to try out new and different things. I am always thinking of what to do to make money and influence society positively. If I have something in mind that bothers me, I will not stop until I see it to completion. I definitely got my drive from my parents too, so I am grateful for them. 

As for me, I am not afraid to take risks and when my heart goes into something, I do not back down until I see it take off. Giving up is not in my vocabulary, but giving birth is and that is how I am here today with my new baby, the Rangi Gallery. 

What are your future plans and aspirations for your company?

The RANGI vision is to become Tanzania’s leading art gallery by running a one-stop art gallery by providing a space – virtually and physically – where it explores what art is, what the discipline entails, showcases and distributes the widest definition of art and its forms, illustrating the value of both amateur and professional art.

What gives you the most satisfaction being an entrepreneur?

First and foremost, there’s a huge satisfaction of doing what you love and enjoying it. It’s the freedom to do as I please for me, doing it my way in other words. The no boundary notion, the freedom of flexible working hours that suit my lifestyle and also knowing that I can take time off whenever I want, goes a long way in achieving entrepreneur satisfaction. Especially when you are doing what you love.

Despite the lower and inconsistent income at times, and the difficulty of finding the right balance between work and personal life and most times ending up sacrificing the latter in the effort to grow a healthy, thriving business.

There is no greater satisfaction than when you toil in doing your passion and you succeed. That’s why I am a huge believer in the mantra “work hard, play hard ” in the midst of attempting to balance the two. 

What’s the biggest piece of advice you can give to other women looking to start-up?

When you start your venture, no matter what challenges you encounter, always look forward, not back.

Be bold, learn through your mistakes and keep pushing forward, because you are most likely moving towards the right direction. Last but not least, always remember, it starts with you. 

Believe in yourself. No one is going to believe in you, the way you do in yourself.

Contact or follow Rangi Gallery

WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | EMAIL lornamashiba@gmail.com