The Grass-Fields Scandal is a Cautionary Tale with Key Lessons

Over the past weeks, social media has been blowing up with much commentary about the recent debacle surrounding the Grass-Fields African fashion brand, founded by two sisters, Michelle, and Christelle Nganhou. They were about to shut down their website for good last year when one of the twin sisters fell seriously ill. However, by what some might call a miracle or a timely intervention, the brand did not fold up but remained in operation, much to everyone’s relief. However, the new story is that the twin sisters are no longer owners of the company. They had been in administration since last year and were eventually bought out. This entire experience has lessons for many young businesses on the come up, and we are about to discuss them.

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First, what really happened that led to the twins being terminated from the company they started? New management posted a company update on the Grass-Fields website and has had the whole social sphere in an uproar, especially on TikTok. Evidence from various business documents and filings on Companies House UK suggest that the company has been suffering for the past two years and is in administration, ultimately leading to a buyout. There were further details into their financial standing. It also appears that although Grass-fields was generating much revenue – up to a whopping $5 million in sales for 2018, they were also owing many investors in the subsequent years after that. One of the founders claims the company was “stolen” from them, but this could be tantamount to disinformation and has possibly led the current management to open a legal case for defamation of name and character. There are so many things to learn from this Grass-Fields scandal.

Choose your business partners wisely

Everyone working with and on your business can be considered partners because they are working towards achieving a shared vision or goal. Once things go sideways and all people’s core values are no longer aligned toward the goal, things become awry. When you start a business, it is a good idea to research your potential partners to discover their beliefs, work ethic, and if they have a successful track record. In all this, it is critical not to act impulsively and partner with people(s) out of a position of need but instead from a vantage point.

Protect yourself and get good legal representation

In the early stages of a business, one might get away with not having proper legal advice. Still, once it begins to grow, it becomes highly imperative to secure your legal department efficiently. Legal is important for reviewing contracts, to weigh in on important business decisions and helps to regulate your dealings with others in a way that protects both you and the business from harm. You can always do a high level research of the legal environment in the industry you are operating in and take key steps to secure a lawyer where necessary. Doing this might be expensive but it is totally and absolutely worth the investment.

Scale the business only when ready for the implications

Scaling a business comes with many implications that the brand may not have been ready for. According to the financial documents, they had a fair amount of debtors. Albeit, the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 along with Michele’s medical challenges must have made things very difficult for Grass-Fields. However, it is important to know when to grow fast and when to scale back because slow and steady is what really wins the race. Also, the race is not always to the swift. Before the Grass-Fields scandal, the brand had lofty goals of expanding their workforce and creating jobs but each time you bring someone on board a team, it also means that they are also in the line of fire if anything were to go wrong. Hire carefully and be strategic with your SWOT analysis amidst an ever-changing economic landscape.

You need a good PR and crisis communications team

When something bad happens in a business setting, most founders are ill-prepared for what to do or how to handle the situation. The way you act in marketing is very different from a public relations (PR) scenario. This entire Grass-Fields scandal can be classified as a communications crisis and it is important to have a PR practitioner who can spring into action to craft proper messaging so that the public understands what is happening and can be properly informed. It is also that person’s job to spot a potential problem before it happens and avoid it. When it cannot be avoided, it can certainly be contained and in this case, there was probably little or no PR consultation, which has led to many people iterating their account of the story on social media, based on their own understanding of it. Was there a PR team handling this behind the scenes? In relation to the Grass-Fields scandal, all we have to go off of is a public statement on the company blog but several scattered social videos and posts from one of the sisters, some of which have been since retracted.

Earn the customer’s trust and never let go if it

Having researched the mixed reviews, it appears that Grass-Fields might have been faltering in regards to fulfilling orders, returns, exchanges and refunds, and this started even while the sisters were at the helm. There is no indication of the extent of any order backlogs or if there is a shortage of labour and manpower for customer service but one thing is certain, the customer’s trust is EVERYTHING. The Grass-Fields sisters were genuinely loved by so many and the brand was a true source of pride for the Black community. They got it right but right now, fans and followers are making reaction videos on social media, and dropping public comments on posts (some complaints and others praise) and it is still unclear what the next move in this situation will be. The new management are likely non-Black and will probably have to manage this public relations crisis or do nothing in the hopes that it goes away. Regardless of if this entire case goes to court or not, it is probably the hope of most who watched the Grass-Fields brand grow from nothing into something that it ends with a peaceful resolution.

Update – April 2024

The sisters have gotten the business back and are now in full control of the company’s operations. This is all the information available at this time. SUBSCRIBE to the newsletter to stay updated on this content and more!