THIS WEEK


Company Spotlight Cassava Republic


Bakare-Yusuf outlines her future plans for flourishing Cassava


Academic Bibi Bakare-Yusuf established Cassava Press to “change the way the world thinks about African writing”, and 15 years on from its inception, the publisher is more ambitious than ever


Text Natasha Onwuemezi 14 9th April 2021


B


ibi Bakare-Yusuf has lost her voice. This means no Zoom chat for this interview, but in an era of Zoom chat aſter Zoom chat, followed by the odd


rogue Microsoſt Teams meeting, and possibly a cheeky Google Meet to round out the day, maybe one fewer video conversation is beter for everyone. It’s interesting to think that video conferencing tool Skype fumbled a 17-year lead and lost its crown to Zoom with the emergence of the pandemic—but this reminds us that in the world of busi- ness you can’t be complacent. You have to work hard for customer loyalt.


African publisher Cassava Republic has been able to


carve out a space in the industry by catering directly to the wants of its readers and trying to reach them directly, in non-traditional spaces. An academic, Bakare-Yusuf set up Cassava to “change the way the world thinks about African writing”, and as she didn’t have a background in publish- ing or business, she was willing to ask questions about how


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