Interview of Evie Kanhai, CEO of GoGrow, conducted by Sohaib Elbebny on August 11, 2020.
Co-Grow is a coworking space in Guyana, which focuses on employing young mothers and the differently-abled who have challenges working in traditional office settings.
Before March 2020, CoGrow has eight companies using their coworking area’s physical space, and six moved to the virtual subscription model.
After Covid-19, CoGrow started their virtual service subscription.
CoGrow offer is offering an opportunity for companies to test the waters with a low investment. Because then they can use our coworking address to sign up their companies in Guyana.
The subscription model helped to Cope with the Covid-19 shutdown and keep in business while providing their services.
Evie has a family business background.
Her father was a successful businessman, and he was conservative.
Evie worked for him for seven years. This is how she got the knowledge on how to run a business.
Evie met her love at 24 and had her first child out of marriage. Her father was upset, and did not talk to her for one year.
Evie wanted to prove she can succeed and achieve something big without her father’s control and power. She and her husband decided to start their own business. They started with a small coffee shop.
She tried to support the women community in her country by giving them space to share their experience and knowledge.
“I was able to use the coffee shop as also a place to impact other businesswomen because we did a lot of open mic nights for professionals, where they can come talk about themselves. We made women’s business breakfast, where we have a topic, and a professional would come to talk about it. “
— Evie Kanhai
Evie and her husband decided to start a coworking space where they can help companies to work.
Evie wasn’t afraid of her conservative society and family and is still proving that women can build and succeed if they have the opportunity.
“If girls don’t follow what their parents say, it’s like gloom and doom will follow you for the rest of the girl’s life. I’m extremely proud that I was able to break that, what do you say? That prediction that I didn’t fall into the percentage of women that fail. And I say fail because you are failing when you don’t meet father’s expectations. “
— Evie Kanhai
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