What’s the story behind KnowThyBrand Women?
The brand was originally born in Singapore in 2014. I became a freelancer after I decided to quit my corporate job. [At the time], Singapore did not allow having more than one client, and I was getting several clients, so I had to urgently come up with a name and company.
It started as a traditional branding and marketing agency, and then we moved to London, and I continued. For me, it has always been very important to give back to the community, and I used my skills in marketing and branding to support causes, entrepreneurs and startups, and then we moved to Luxembourg.
The moment that really changed my career was working with a female entrepreneur who had lost everything through covid, and as they didn’t have a website, there was no way to sell. So here I was this Friday evening, giving her tips on how to do marketing, and I realised how unfair it is that this lady has to wait for my Friday evening because my paying clients are the priority. For me, it was a great injustice. [But] learning about social entrepreneurship at the university, I realised I could kill two birds with one stone.
What makes a societal impact company (SIS) a true social enterprise?
First, it’s legal. You need to be accredited, and it takes quite some time. If you already have a company and want to make the switch, you need to rewrite your articles of incorporation to make sure that the purpose is very clear. I had two lawyers helping me and the labour ministry was very supportive. And then every year you need to submit two reports, your financial and non-financial reports that highlight all the activities that have been implemented that year.
A social enterprise is a for-profit organisation. It is not a non-profit organisation [association sans but lucratif--asbl]; it’s not a charity, and it’s not a non-governmental organisation.
We are for-profit but reinvest in a social cause. To be a social enterprise across the world, you need to reinvest at least 50% of the profits. In Luxembourg, if you invest 100% of the profit--which kind of makes you an asbl--you don’t get to pay corporate taxes because you don’t keep profits.
Why the focus on women?
Before launching, I discovered that you can’t just try to help everything and everyone. If you really want to have a strong impact, you need to go where you think you can really make a difference.
Supporting women has always been something very important for me, and I never understood why there was such a misogynist society. When I was in Italy, I thought it was because it was a Catholic country. And then I went to Vietnam and realised that it was the same, and it’s a communist country. I did more research and [discovered] it’s everywhere; there is no country where we have equality.
On top of that, a lot of my clients are women. I was really impressed by the impact personal branding was having on women versus the impact it was having on men. When I talk about the challenges women face in business, I always point to two components. First, the external barriers--gender bias, pay gap, microaggressions, sexual harassment, unpaid work--but then there is the internal barrier, which is partly a result of the external barriers and partly engrained in our nature. We tend to think our jobs demonstrate our value, we underestimate ourselves and downplay our strengths.
Part of a personal branding [exercise] with my clients [entails] reminding them of their value. I make them list everything they’ve done and remind them of what they’re capable of and [point out] their transferable skills.
How does personal branding translate towards a corporate audience?
This translates in the way we communicate our strengths, and I call it our inner superpowers. As soon as you identify your inner superpower, what matters to you, your goal and what success looks like to you, you also think about your audience, how to present yourself and the best way to optimise their perception of you.
Another thing is that, usually, when a company starts, the vision of the person who started the company might get lost over the years, especially in big corporations. So [branding] cannot just be dictated from the top-down because your people know your brand better than you think and deliver it every day. That’s why I get frustrated when I see massive rebranding campaigns by agencies. And once it’s done, they go to the staff and say: ‘Okay, this is our new brand promise, go and deliver it.’ People should be involved in defining the company’s brand. Of course, there must be direction from the top-down, but if you just go in that direction, and the company staff on the field goes in a completely different direction, it will take quite a long time for the two to align. It needs to be engrained in the company’s culture. Make sure everybody understands what the company stands for and how each individual can contribute to that goal.
How do you remain profitable by reinvesting your profits for impact?
As an individual, I remain profitable because I get paid for my services. As a company, it works because there are many ways of doing social enterprise, and mine is a circular one. I have different categories of target audiences, and I charge differently depending on their needs. I always try to charge a little bit because otherwise people take advantage and don't see the value of what you offer to them. But that's how it works… Nobody needs to know which of my clients pay and which of my clients don't. That stays between us and them.
Earlier, you said social enterprises are the way forward. Can you elaborate on this? Does this explain why more Luxembourg companies are embracing the SIS status?
There are two key things. [First], people are starting to catch up and are realising that we can’t continue the way we did in the past. When you have to choose between a normal enterprise or an enterprise that actually benefits society, I think a lot of people will choose the latter. There is also a push from the European Union and from the labour ministry. By the end of September, a new incubator and online portal for SIS companies in Luxembourg will be announced, and by October the ministry will launch a new label.
[Second], asbls are becoming social enterprises, and this is because as an asbl, you cannot charge. Some--not all, as it depends on the size--tend to have problems because you constantly ask for money and depend on others before you can work. And that’s why I never wanted to go down that route. SIS companies are for-profit because we charge like any other company, offer products or services and are independent. It’s up to us to create products and services that are good enough for people to want to buy them. But then what do we do with the money? That’s when the magic happens.
What will be the aim of this new label, and what will it do for the industry?
What we discovered when we met with the SIS community last year was that there’s a lot of misconception about what an SIS is. Some people approach us with this misconception that being a social enterprise means that you are an asbl and you don’t charge. The second thing is a lot of companies call themselves social because it looks good, but they’re not. To explain what it is, think about the Made in Luxembourg label. It is the same concept--to explain to the world what a social enterprise is and recognise what we are actually set to achieve and inspire others to do the same.
At the moment, if you want to become a social enterprise, MyGuichet.lu explains the technicalities of becoming a social enterprise, [but] there are no stories of success or push towards becoming one. My job, because I work in branding, has been to develop the label [together] with ULESS [Union Luxembourgeoise de l’Économie Sociale et Solidaire]. The labour ministry and ULESS gave me the mandate to do this, and they will take charge of the implementation.
We need to put it out there that if you decide to become a SIS, you can have this amazing label, but most importantly, you become part of [a] community. Already, I’m meeting more people who say that they are social enterprises, and I love it because we’re getting momentum. I feel it’s the beginning of something big.
How innovative are the new projects undertaken by these SIS companies? Are they daring and out of the norm?
We’re seeing different kinds of projects, from supporting immigrants with language skills to [catering for] the holistic well-being of farmers. Honestly, the variety is incredible. In terms of technological innovation, I haven’t come across one that is really pushing the innovation agenda, [but] I think that’s something we should really look into.
You mentioned misconceptions about social enterprises. With corporate social responsibility and everyone doing ESG, how does this blur the lines further?
People are starting to realise that there is something more important than profit, and they’re expecting companies to do more, and companies want to really grow and be relevant in 10 to 20 years. I get a bit frustrated because everybody thinks ESG and sustainability is just about the environment. But environment and social rights go together, and you need governance to make it real. It’s called the planet-people-profit because they are not mutually exclusive, in fact, they reinforce each other.
A lot of people call themselves social, but that’s not true. What they do is that occasionally they do something good, which is great, rather than doing nothing. But being a social enterprise means that you are required to do something, you don’t just say you do it. [Also] an annual report tracks what has been done in a year and that accountability is very important.
Can you summarise the main challenges social enterprises face?
From the beginning, the legal perspective is quite a challenge [and] also tracking and making sure that you report back. But the biggest challenge is getting people to understand that we are for-profit, because there is this mismatch between you wanting to do good and charging for your services. As entrepreneurs, a challenge in Luxembourg is that support is given only if you’re reinvesting 100% and I think this needs to change. In the UK it’s not like this. You already get support and a lot of help if you’re reinvesting at 50%. And I think lowering the requirements will attract more [entrepreneurs].
What’s your advice for prospective social entrepreneurs, and where are the main gaps in Luxembourg where they can really play a role and rise to the occasion?
Entrepreneurs see opportunities and gaps and social entrepreneurs should do the same. Find the gaps where you can have the most impact. [Bridging] the gap between the ultra-rich and the poor [is] an area people could look into.
For future social entrepreneurs, go for it and don’t give up. Entrepreneurship is not easy, but it is totally worth it because knowing that your work will improve the world gives you so much strength when you face obstacles.
It forms part of a 5-part SIS series.