Atim Annette Oton

December 10, 2015

That three week gap…too busy to write

It dawned on me today that I had not written about anything the last three weeks. And it made me a smile because this is how the life of a entrepreneur sometimes plays out. I am not sad or unhappy about it – I just know this was at the bottom of the “must do” pile.…

November 4, 2015

Ownership as a Concept – Chronicles of My Retail Life: A Weekly Series on Calabar Imports

Week Three – The Holiday Season is fast approaching: This week was a mixed one. The first lesson was having a staff take ownership of a store that needed ownership. Sometimes it takes a person a while to get there – I typically see it in less than three months, and it happened this week in…

October 28, 2015

That Week of Ginger Tea – Chronicles of My Retail Life: A Weekly Series on Calabar Imports

Last week, I began Chronicles of My Retail Life, a weekly series of blogs about what’s happening with me at Calabar Imports. It’s a short synopsis of the life of a retailer in Brooklyn and Harlem from day to day events, insights on what happens in the store and what ideas are implemented and dropped.…

October 20, 2015

Chronicles of My Retail Life: A Weekly Series on Calabar Imports

This week, I launch, Chronicles of My Retail Life, a weekly series of blogs about what’s happening with me at Calabar Imports. It’s a short synopsis of the life of a retailer in Brooklyn and Harlem from day to day events, insights on what happens in the store and what ideas are implemented and dropped. This…

September 30, 2015

African Dress Up Game – will you play with me?

I loved paper dolls when I was a child and I know most girls did. When I found this online, I thought it was the beginning of an idea I was working on so, I decided to add it to my blog for others to play with dolls – except – digitally. Enjoy! Click below:…

September 30, 2015

How to Land New Clients: the Basics to the Complex

by Atim Annette Oton The secrets to landing new clients is not really a secret; it is really what you should be doing to stand out from other businesses. Clients are everywhere but most times, they do not know what you do or you are barking up the wrong tree or in the wrong place…

September 21, 2015

Technology as a Business Paradigm Shift

by Atim Annette Oton As Calabar Imports became 10 years old, I sat back and imagined what it would be 5 years later and made a strategic decision to embrace technology in more ways that I could imagined. To do this, I look at what areas we were using technology and what areas we could…

September 11, 2015

The Silence Factory: It is a fun place.

by Atim Annette Oton First published in Calabar Magazine. Every other day, I have the same discussion with someone: an African, a Caribbean or an African-American person. It goes like this: When will we get it together? They complain about how little progress has been made and how we as black people are not ready and…

September 9, 2015

Re-building a Brand: Moving Beyond Disasters and seeing Opportunities

by Atim Annette Oton This article was written for Calabar Magazine, see here. Some people experience a disaster and it ends their businesses; I see it as an opportunity. So, in June of this year, when a fire destroyed our store, Calabar Imports on Washington Avenue. My business partner and I took time off –…

September 8, 2015

Small Business Tuesday Tidbits: the September Series

Some days, posting what I think is hard but I know it is important. Three Lessons today to read: Time, Lists and Numbers Time waits for no man/woman. That sure is the statement of the century. I have been at Calabar imports for 10-1/2 years, December will make it 11, and one thing I have…