MONROVIA — In a groundbreaking achievement honoring Black History Month, the Matcha Design agency has spotlighted ten of the most creative and accomplished Black individuals globally for its annual “Creative Blacks” awards. This prestigious recognition celebrates Black men and women who have demonstrated remarkable leadership in their fields despite significant odds.
Matcha Design, a full-service creative B2B agency specializing in web design, advertising, and branding, has a long-standing reputation for executing its clients’ visions. This year, making Matcha’s list of the ten most creative Black entrepreneurs is Liberia’s Fomba Trawallay—an unprecedented milestone for a Liberian in the global recognition of excellent Black personalities.
Mr. Fomba Trawallay, from street vendor to multi-millionaire, is known for his inspiring journey of turning $200 into a booming entrepreneurial career. He started in Liberia, living with his mother and younger brother. His mother sold peppers and aubergines to support her family.
Trawallay is the Chief Executive Officer of Liberia’s only locally established national toiletries company, Nation Toiletries Inc. Tragically, in 1980, his mother passed away, leaving him as the family’s sole breadwinner. This responsibility forced him to drop out of school and start selling flip-flops from a wheelbarrow to care for his siblings.
When civil war struck Liberia, Trawallay fled to Gambia for two years, eventually returning in 1991 with $200. He officially established his business, Kumba Beindu and Sons, in 1992. Named after his mother, the company quickly grew to become one of Liberia’s first successful self-built native-owned companies. It gained national recognition and won regional and international awards for outstanding quality and business services.
In 2008, former Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf awarded Kumba Beindu and Sons as a success story, providing jobs and opportunities to hundreds of Liberia’s youth. A few decades later, Trawallay opened a second venture, National Toiletries Incorporated, Liberia’s first paper and toiletry product manufacturing facility.
Trawallay was awarded in this category alongside some of the world’s most venerated personalities, including Ignatius Sancho, regarded as Britain’s first-ever Black entrepreneur, Oprah Winfrey, US TV sensation.
Also making this year’s Matcha nominees were Steven Bartlett, Robert Reed Church, Anne-Marie Osawemwenze Ore-Ofe Imafidon MBE, Patrick E. Ngowi, Jason Njoku, Raphael Sofoluke, and former US First Lady Michelle Obama.
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