Designing a go-to-market strategy for commercial smallholder farmers in Ghana
By Charlotte
My experience in Ghana was unforgettable! I have learned so much about designing for different cultures and co-creating with a bunch of stakeholders. Even though it was definitely challenging at points, I had to be very flexible, adopt a new way of working and change my communication style, I am grateful for the new friends I have made along the way and all the places we explored in Ghana and the farms we visited in and around Kumasi!
Charlotte
I’m Charlotte, I’m a Strategic Product Design Engineering Master student and I’m graduating at the Kwadaso Agricultural College in Kumasi, Ghana. My thesis is part of a broader Dutch funded initiative, which aims at improving the horticulture sector in Ghana, in order to increase employment abilities of the Ghanaian youth. Main stakeholders within this project are Delft University of Technology, Kwadaso Agricultural College and Holland Greentech.
Kwadaso Agricultural College is located in Kumasi, Southern Ghana. It is the leading and oldest agricultural institution in Ghana, aiming at teaching its students practical and theoretical horticulture skills. The ongoing project educates farming as a business and this entrepreneurial mindset is embedded within the courses that are taught at Kwadaso Agricultural College. My graduation project aims at co-creating solutions with Kwadaso and surrounding farmers to improve the current go-to-market strategy for commercial smallholder farmers within the Ashanti region in Kumasi.
In order to co-create the go-to-market strategy I have conducted several interviews. I interviewed supermarket managers, commercial smallholders, Kwadaso staff, hotel managers and restaurant managers. Furthermore, I held a few creative sessions at KAC for farmers and staff to collaborate and to facilitate the design of the strategy roadmap.
The final report present the findings and recommendations of a research project focused on developing a comprehensive strategy. I identified three design challenges: developing a B2B strategy for farmers, enhancing farmers' brand awareness through marketing, and improving communication between market queens and farmers. In-depth interviews concluded that prioritizing the B2B strategy would be most beneficial due to demand from restaurants and hotels. Based on the chosen design challenge, strategic and tactical roadmaps were developed, drawing from literature research and coded interview transcripts. Feel free to check out the full report here!
I am beyond grateful for my experience in Ghana, for the new friends I made and for all the individuals I have met along the way. Ghana is a beautiful country with the most friendly people. I had the chance to explore a bit over the weekends, I went to the beach at Busua, went horse-riding and stand up paddle boarding at Bosumtwi Lake and learned how to make traditional Ghanaian dishes like fufu and banku!
