How One Visionary is Driving Innovation in Property Investing

 A new generation of innovators is emerging and reshaping business in Zambia. One of the country’s most forward thinking business visionaries is Natasha Chiumya. A lawyer by profession, Natasha is the Managing Partner of FNC legal, a niche legal practice based in Lusaka, Zambia’s capital city. Natasha holds an honors degree in law from the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom. She also holds an MBA from the University of Cape Town in South Africa.  Natasha has forged a unique career path at the intersection of corporate law, finance and property development.  She has helped to build a unique legal practice which is now helping diaspora communities to acquire properties in a safe and professional way.

Natasha’s business acumen had early beginnings. Inspired by the example of her entrepreneurial parents, Natasha had always nurtured the desire to become a successful businesswoman. She fondly recalls how once when her parents were extending their house, she sold her toys to the construction workers in order to make some money for herself.  She would later pursue the study of the law and eventually work in international development but with a focus on private sector development. Upon completion of her MBA she decided to marry her passion of corporate law with her passion for business. In reflecting on career path, Natasha believes that she focused her career on areas in which she knew she possessed inherent strengths and capabilities. She also sought to carve out a career path which she believed could differentiate her.  Her dual passion in business and corporate law would thus eventually lead her into the field of property development.

With her foray into the field of property development, Natasha and her firm expanded their client base quickly, especially within the property development scene in Lusaka. In the course of their business Natasha and her team started getting inquiries from clients in the diaspora seeking to buy property in Zambia. Natasha noted that many of the inquiries were from individuals who were seeking to invest in property without the risk of being swindled.  Natasha and her team decided that they would help people invest in property in a safe way. This led to the development of Diaspora Connect, a platform designed to help property investors in the diaspora to make investments in Zambia’s property markets. The platform helps Zambians in the Diaspora to buy property in Zambia in a safe way. Diaspora Connect achieves this by linking property investors in the diaspora with credible service providers such as developers and financial institutions. The platform is in the process of establishing what Natasha describes as a ‘One Stop Shop’ for property investors. Success for Natasha has not come easy however. She notes that her journey has been marked by highs and lows. She however, underscores the importance of focus and perseverance as essential elements of her business success. Natasha cites the fact that she has been at work building her business for over 10 years as an example. She is also a firm believer in the provision of excellent service and building a reputation for excellence.  She believes that excellent service and a reputation for excellence helps in time when business conditions are adverse.

Natasha is also passionate about promoting women in business. She firmly believes that more women need to become business owners and leaders. She contends that starting businesses gives women the ability to have control over their time and to balance their family and career commitments better than in conventional career paths.  Natasha advises emerging entrepreneurs to have focus and commitment. She urges entrepreneurs not to pursue too many interests but to pick a line of work which will hold their interest over a long time frame. She is also big on originality and urges entrepreneurs to build businesses that are original and unique