Young Entrepreneur meets UK Candle Making Guru
In a charming and wonderfully varied shop, complete with stained glass windows and fluffy cat luxuriating on the doorstep, two candle-makers who are worlds apart in every instance except for devotion to their art are animatedly discussing appropriate ‘wick lengths’.
Not an extraordinarily interesting topic for you, but a fascinating artistry masterclass for David Ssegawa.
Mr Ssegawa is a young entrepreneur from Uganda who won the Faidika Na BBC competition in June of this year by presenting his business plan to open a local candle-making business negating the need for imports from China.
The competition title translates as ‘Prosper with the BBC’, and the ‘prosperities’ that have been offered include a business mentorship in Uganda and prize money of US$2,000.
However, Mr Ssegawa takes his education very seriously and is grasping every opportunity he is offered, including this meet and greet organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat with ‘United Kingdom candle guru’ David Constable. This was on 12 September 2007.
From the moment Mr Ssegawa steps foot in the shop it’s clear that he has adopted a sponge-like disposition and is keen to absorb every scent, design, technique and lesson possible, and happily the British candle-maker is relishing the opportunity to share the riches of his knowledge with such a worthy young man. Mr Constable has decades of experience in the industry, has provided candles to the Royal Family and appeared in the Guinness Book of Records for his candle-making feats.
Conversation flits from scenting to moulding, covering myriad topics in between. Mr Ssegawa exclaims that English candle-making techniques are “unique!”, and very pragmatic.
They even extensively discuss hazards. Apparently at his earlier interview at the BBC (as he affectionately describes “at 4.30 this morning, I talked to the world”) the young Ugandan was asked about the effect of candles on global warming, he receives the retort from the English expert “I think we should worry about what electricity is doing first, don’t you?” To say their intended productions are contrasting would belittle the chasm that exists between them.
David Constable produces things of beauty and genuine creativity fashioned into every shaping imaginable, David Ssegawa will be producing products with a utility and definitive purpose for a population who need them to cope with continuing blackouts and power cuts. However, this doesn’t prohibit a bond and professional understanding developing between the two men, or prevent intelligence gathering for future potential in the small African enterprise.
At only 22, Mr Ssegawa promotes an aura of trust around himself, stemming from his unbounded enthusiasm and hunger to succeed. One gets the sense that placing your faith in him would not be a misguided venture and hopefully this bodes well for his budding company.
Similarly the generosity displayed by Mr Constable, who made the trip from his factory in Wales especially to share his expertise, is not merely touching but wholly necessary if we are to promote the training of young and capable Africans to eventually compete in world markets. As Mr Ssegawa remarks, he will have “great and fond memories” of a man he described as kind, open-hearted and eager to share. The meeting ends with a new friendship, a signed book and, of course, a chart which effectively measures and analyses wicks. A mundane tool for looking at string to the unenlightened, a stepping stone to self-empowerment and a good quality of life for those in the know.