Kehinde Odulana, the Chief Executive Officer of Celebration E-Cards Limited is an entrepreneur whose passion, dedication and willingness to take risks propelled her to chart a new course in entrepreneurship using her creativity. In this interview with YEJIDE GBENGA-OGUNDARE, she speaks on digital innovation and advancement, how digital technology is helping with sustainability growth in the digital age, building her business around her knowledge on digital technology, how she uses her craft to give joy, relationship between her business, green environment and pollution among other issues.
What inspired your passion for environmental sustainability and reducing pollution?
My passion for environmental sustainability and reducing pollution stemmed from a Step Up program organised by Girls Talk Corporation. In collaboration with my team, we worked on creating a business idea focused on developing a technological solution to help countries and societies achieve sustainability goals, particularly the net-zero targets outlined in the Paris Agreement for 2050. Our idea, Carbon Capture Technology, gave me valuable into the impacts of climate change on public and individual health, as well as the broader environmental challenges we face. The project involved extensive research, reading numerous articles on how climate change has severely affected our planet. We focused on best practices for capturing carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere at its point of emission, preventing it from reaching the ground level and storing it within the natural environment.
Through this research, I gained a deeper understanding of the delicate balance between technological advancement and environmental responsibility. While carbon capture technology holds great potential, I realised that true sustainability requires a holistic approach; one that addresses energy consumption, production methods, waste management, and overall consumption habits. This understanding motivated me to create a green business with a singular mission: to provide innovative products that not only support but accelerate society’s transition to a more sustainable future.
How will you describe life as a female entrepreneur?
Being an entrepreneur is about passion, dedication, and the willingness to take risks. I believe anyone can succeed in entrepreneurship as long as they have a strong drive and passion for what they do. As a female entrepreneur, my passion for technology has played a significant role in helping me run my business. With a broad knowledge of digital technology, I’ve been able to oversee my business from inception to launch. Building my business around my love for digital technology has not only made my work incredibly fulfilling, but it has also provided me with the knowledge and insight necessary to build impactful solutions.
You operate a digital connection hub, what is the significance of this and how does it affect the average person?
Celebration E-Cards is more than just a platform for sending digital greeting cards, it serves as a digital connection hub that simplifies and enhances the way individuals celebrate and connect and with each other. It offers convenience, personalisation, and sustainable approach to staying in touch with loved ones, no matter the distance. In today’s fast-paced digital world, our platform plays a crucial role in strengthening relationships, helping people connect in meaningful ways even when they are apart.
How does inflation affect your business and how do you navigate that rough terrain?
Unlike traditional cards, digital greeting cards don’t incur the costs associated with printing, shipping, or delivery as our greeting cards are delivered via email. However, while digital greeting cards avoid the costs associated with physical products, they are not completely protected from the effects of inflation, as our product infrastructure relies on cloud services, and software subscriptions, which may experience price increases as inflation drives up costs in the tech sector.
To navigate this challenge, we continuously evaluate our operational expenses and explore partnerships or service providers that offer more cost-effective solutions and also by focusing on efficiency and maintaining a strong value proposition, we aim to keep costs manageable and continue providing high-quality products to our customers.
How capital intensive is it to set up your kind of business?
Setting up a digital greeting card solution is capital intensive, mainly because it requires significant financial investment in technology and design. However, the beauty of a digital product like our digital greeting cards is that it is highly scalable, and once the platform is set up, expanding the business becomes much more efficient and cost-effective, compared to traditional businesses.
As demand grows, continuous investment in marketing, improving platform features, and increasing e-card designs will be necessary to sustain growth and stay competitive in the market. But overall, the scalability of a digital greeting card solution makes it a promising business model for long-term success.
What inspired you to pursue this line of business?
Celebrating others has been a passion of mine for as long as I can remember. Growing up, making people feel valued and appreciated brought me endless joy. As life progressed, my circle of friends stretched across continents and time zones. The joy of seeing my friends thrive in different parts of the world was often mixed with the sadness of not being able to celebrate their milestones in person. I vividly remember the birthday of a dear friend who relocated. The distance made it impossible for me to deliver a heartfelt gift or even a hug. I felt helpless and emotional, wishing there was a way to bridge the gap. That was when the idea struck me: why not create a way for people to share in the joy of celebrating together, regardless of distance.
This inspired the creation of Celebration E-Cards Limited, where e-cards are more than just digital greetings, they transform into a collective hug, a shared smile, and a surprise that can brighten up someone’s day.
This seems an emotional venture, how do you manage to merge the lines of emotions and business seamlessly?
We understand that our goal is to help individuals express their feelings in a personal and thoughtful way, providing an easy solution for family, friends, colleagues, or clients to stay connected and create cherished memories that leave a lasting impression. Merging emotions with business seamlessly is a delicate art that involves balancing the emotional needs of our customers with our strategic business goals. To achieve this, we focus on designing e-cards that capture the right tone and sentiment, ensuring that each card resonates with the sender and recipient creating a meaningful connection. Additionally, our occasions are thoughtfully segmented (e.g., birthdays, farewells, appreciation, anniversaries, weddings, etc). This segmentation allows us to create authentic and tailored experiences for each customer, making every interaction feel more meaningful and memorable.
What need are you meeting in the society?
Celebration E-Cards is not just about connection but also about sustainable choices. Alongside our mission to connect people, we are committed to reducing carbon footprint by offering a sustainable alternative to traditional paper cards. According to global data, paper production is a significant environmental challenge. An estimated 420 million tons of paper are produced each year which is equivalent to about two sheets of paper for every person on Earth every hour. This demand is expected to double by 2030.
The environmental impact of paper production includes deforestation, massive energy and water consumption, air pollution, and waste accumulation. Moreover, deforestation plays a major role in climate change, as it accounts for 10-15% of global CO2 emissions.
Although this percentage has dropped from 20% in recent years, this decline doesn’t indicate that deforestation has lessened. Instead, it reflects an increase in emissions from fossil fuels, which has made the percentage from deforestation appear smaller by comparison.
In addition, as we continue to grow, we are committed to contributing to sustainability by planting trees in local communities. This initiative will help combat environmental pollution and create a cleaner environment for future generations. Celebration E-Cards offer an eco-friendly alternative to traditional paper cards, helping reduce the demand for resources tied to deforestation and pollution. By choosing digital, you join us in supporting a cleaner, greener way to celebrate.
Who are your clients; are they individuals or businesses?
Our digital greeting card solution serves a wide range of clients, including both individuals and businesses. The versatility of digital greeting cards makes them ideal for personal celebrations, as well as for corporate use, such as sending greetings to employees, clients, or partners. This allows us to cater to various sectors and customer segments, making our platform a flexible solution for diverse needs.
Are there many people in this line of business or you just charted this course from your passion?
While there may be other competitors, we’ve charted this course driven by passion and the desire to offer a modern solution for meaningful connections.
Do you face any challenges and how do you tackle them?
Yes, Challenges are the norm when building any solution. I was very keen on creating an interface that is seamless, intuitive, and visually appealing to users, as the success of a digital solution relies heavily on user satisfaction. Our initial project timeline was set for 3 months, which we eventually extended to 6 months due to iterations on UI/UX design, functionality testing, and bug fixing. To address these challenges, we conducted continuous usability testing to gather feedback and pain points. This iterative process allowed us to refine the solution until we were confident that our digital greeting card solution was ready for launch.
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