African chic on display.

Ashanti Origins finds a home in Brooklyn

The flagship store of Ashanti Origins (www.ashantiorigins.com) may be 2,000 square feet in Brooklyn, New York's Fort Greene section, but it's a magical doorway that transports your spirit to a faraway land.

Through its elegant display of African-inspired furniture and housewares, this six-employee enterprise evokes the essence of being in and surrounded by the artistic beauty of modern Africa. That's right, modern Africa, because Ashanti Origins does not sell artifacts or collectibles. It designs, manufactures, and retails housewares with an African essence that are designed to be used in modern homes.

"People want to live in an environment that reflects who they are," says Linda M. Howard, CEO of Ashanti Origins, which generated more than $350,000 in sales last year alone. "Our skilled Ashanti craftsmen make custom furniture consumers can relax in every day and be proud of for years to come. The customers even choose the woods and skins (leather, ostrich, etc.) their furniture is made from."

Howard, a former attorney and graduate from the University of Pennsylvania's School of Law, began Ashanti Origins in 1998 as the U.S. arm of Image Afrika Ltd., an Accra, Ghana-based company that designs and manufactures furniture. Howard's husband, entrepreneur Kwabena R. Smith, operates Image Afrika Ltd. The couple first sold their unique products overseas but formed Ashanti Origins as a separate company to meet the challenge of selling in the States. However, upon their 1998 foray into the U.S., the couple met unexpected challenges.

"We began by selling nationwide through dealers while we promoted the business through fairs such as the International African Arts Festival held here in Brooklyn," says Howard. "We found that we got more sales in one weekend at the fairs than we had in three months from one of our dealers."

The couple reasoned that all of their dealers simply did not share their passion for the design, their ability to explain the significance of each piece, or had the same incentive. "We have a greater financial interest in the success of each sale," says Howard.

Ashanti Origins dropped some of the dealers and began building a brand name with the opening of its first retail location in Brooklyn. Howard and Smith have since secured an adjoining property that will expand the Brooklyn location to 5,000 square feet.

Not a business couple content to rest on their laurels, the owners plan to open a shop in Harlem in 2002. The couple opened their Brooklyn site with personal savings combined with an additional $75,000 raised with the help of friends and family. They plan to use funds generated through company sales and outside investors for the Harlem venture. "We are committed to building this business against the odds," says Howard.

Ashanti Origins, 59 Lafayette Ave.,
Brooklyn, N.Y. 11217; 718-855-1006;
www.ashantiorigins.com