Fanny, A Woman Of Many Parts

Fanny Aggrey-Fynn Amissah

Competition in the country's fashion industry is virtually at higher gear. That follows the apparent daily popping up of numerous fashion joints throughout the country, a situation Ms Fanny Amissah, a new entrant to the field says is having a negative impact on fashion businesses nationwide.

Fanny, the owner of Me 'n' Eu Collections, a beads and hats enterprise in Tema told the GRAPHIC BUSINESS that 'the too many beads and fashion institutions' and many people's desires to buy quality things at a low cost 'just because they know you' was a huge challenge to her two year-old company.

Before settling to the realms of entreprenuership, Fanny said she had initially pursued her childhood ambitions of taking over from her father's profession as a broadcast journalist but decided to pull out only to now become a business woman.

She said she thus spent over two years practising the profession; a year each at Miridian and Adom FM, both Tema based private radio stations.

But while working as an online broadcast journalist with Adom FM in 2005, Fanny said she developed interest in the beauty industry and thus enrolled at the Second Image Beauty Academy, a private beauty and therapeutic institute in Accra for a one year course as a beauty specialist in bridal make-up, nails and others.

“I was also by then doing the beads training alongside the beauty course,” she said adding that Nesy Concepts, co-ordinated by Ms Stacy Yayra Makumator, a renowned beads manufacturing and training company initially featured on this page afforded her the opportunity to undergo the bead making training.

One individual, several tentacles
Gazing at her Me 'n' Eu Collections in Tema, which currently operates from Safari Salon in Tema Community Seven, the actress cum entreprenuer said she hoped to fully exploit her talents as a fashion designer but added that her “octopus sort-of-work-skills” was sometimes making her confused as to which direction to take.

“See, I was initially making hats and beads for sale but have currently suspended the hat making because they don't sell. I also act and doubles as a broadcast journalist and a beauty specialist in bridal, nails making and the rest as well.”

She, however mentioned that she was at the time trimming off her broadcasting tentacles to make way for the entreprenuerial, acting and fashion businesses to blossom.

But lack of finance, she said, was now her problem and thus noted that she was currently hoping to source for funds to enable her “go wholly into the fashion sector to engage in local clothes, bead and hat making and all that concerns fashion. I really want to put more of my attention on the fashion sector,” Fanny said.

She said the virtually fallow nature of the bead industry in Tema meant that any little investments from her Me 'n' Eu Collections could yield positive returns in the near future.

“In Tema, for instance, there's no place where you can go and buy the raw beads in large quantities like we do at Agblogbloshie and other areas,” she said.

According to her, the few areas that even sold in large quantities “do not also have the beads in variety. So if I'm able to raise enough funds, then I can consider wholesaling the beads to interested persons.”

Ms Fanny would, however, not raise the said funds from the country's financial institutions.

“Loans, for now, no! May be in the near future,” she said noting that the little financial support that her family was currently offering her was enough, especially in the mean time.

She, however added that she had over the years been seeking genuine financial commitments or partnerships from individuals and corporate institutions to help push her forward but to no avail.

No free lunch here
Fanny has interesting experiences when it comes to asking for, and getting financial help from people who “at first would appear ethusiatic' but have other hidden motives.

Ms Fanny Amissah, the second runner-up of TV3's 2008 Ghana Most Beautiful said some responses to these her financial requests to help push her bead trading forward have sometimes been frustrating.

“Some of the people, especially the men are just not prepared to help you freely. Their demands sometimes make you want to believe that it is a crime to look good in this country,” she noted.

Views on the movie industry
Ms Fanny has featured and played lead roles in several locally produced movies including the 'Harvest at 17' by Kow Ansah, the 'Next Flight', the 'Sexy Angel', 'Lady Bianca' in which she was the Lady Bianca as well as TV serials such as Channel of Hope by the Pentecost Church of Ghana.

According to Fanny, she was currently rehearsing towards featuring in her next movie that would soon hit the movie market.

Ms Fanny, alias 'Lady Bianca' or even the 'Sexy Angel' is an actress with an urge for the job. And she holds some passionate views concerning the movie industry in Ghana and its products of late, especially the content of those movies.

“How can you put characters in thatch houses, depicting a village scene yet allow those characters to wear robber nails,” she asked and further wondered if most characters' actions in the movies do depict the scenes they claim to potray.

“You cannot say that somebody is poor, the person has no food to eat, or an actress is an old woman yet allow such a character to be in the film in flashy skin.

That doesn't send the right sginals to the audience,” she said and further observed that it was better movie producers trained to act and potray themselves to match with the role they had been asked to play.

Ms Fanny also has issues with movie directors and producers who seem to think that featuring only 'renown' movie stars is the surest way to getting such a movie to sell and thus bring value to such a director or producer's money.

“Movie Directors and producers should actualy take up the risk of raising talents, bring up unknown faces and give them the chance to show their talents in the sector.”

According to Fanny, “a good film is bound to sell no matter the personality used” and thus urged stakeholders of the country's movie industry to cast their nets beyond the renown actors or actresses.

According to the 'Lady Bianca', continuous concentration on a particular actor or actress due to such person's renowness in the field had the tendency of “even making such a person become stale in acting. The audience may also get bored with the person's movies, because, it becomes as if they were watching the same movie over and over .”

On the issue of nude movies currently taking over the market, Fanny 'Lady Bianca' again said that was unwelcoming in her opinion.

“It is not how sexy a movie is that would make it sell.

Goodwill killing businesses
Ghanaians are noted for their hospitality towards one another and outsiders in particular, a trait that has arguably earned the nation enviable recognition in the global tourism arena.

Back home, many expect the same to continue including having to buy products from family members and friends at special offers or prices.

To Fanny, who said she had had a great deal in such demands, those acts only pulls the small busineeses back.

Some people at times want to buy or be given the products at goodwill and this is not easy, it kills the business,” she said adding that having realistic prices for her products could have possiblly inched her off her present stance.

On the future of her Me 'n' Eu Collections, Fanny said “I want to see myself everywhere.” I should be in good standing and be able to do what I have always liked doing.”