March 14, 2017 – Yvette Ansah, founder of upscale Ghanaian eatery Café Kwae, visited Ashesi’s Foundations of Design and Entrepreneurship (FDE) class to share the story behind the locally acclaimed startup.
“Everything we do is built on the theme that everything matters,” she explained. “So from the floor being cleaned, to the shoes we wear, to how we’re looking, to how we greet guests when they arrive, to how the food is plated – everything matters.”
Since its opening, the coffee shop has been featured in the Financial Times and has received reviews from several leading publications. In her talk with the class, Yvette shared insights into the operational ethos of the two-year old start-up, and her journey in building the Café Kwae brand.
“Café Kwae is that place, where I want people to feel as comfortable as they would be in their homes,” she said. “For us to do that, we have to make sure that the guests feel like they own the place. You make the customer feel that the business is invested in them. Everything we do, we’re doing with a superior guest or customer experience in mind.”
As part of its curriculum, the focus of the FDE class is to introduce freshmen to entrepreneurship and problem solving through design thinking while giving them hands-on experience in starting up and running a business. Throughout the yearlong journey, the class also hosts several entrepreneurs to help the students gain firsthand interaction with business owners.