Ansina Roothoorodoo: Finding solace through business

“If you can dream it, you can achieve it,” believes Ansina Roothoorodoo. At a young age, the ambitious lady manages a business which is flourishing day by day. Determined, disciplined and strong-willed, Ansina is all set to take her enterprise “Focus Digital Photography” to new heights. 

Aged 21, Ansina Roothoorodoo started her career and journey in 2014. From her teenage days, she was passionate about photography but her lack of professional equipment did not allow her to pursue her dream. However, she did not give up. “After college, I decided to follow my passion and at the same time improve my photography skills through a course in digital photography. It helped me enhance my skills and knowledge,” she says. 

Once she completed the photography course, her passion grew even more. Her life took a different turn when her trainer proposed her to design a business plan on providing professional photography services. From there, began another venture for Ansina. “In Mauritius, there are many photographers who work without having any formal training, or without registering their business. On the other hand, those who are formally trained and are registered offer their services at a very high price, which not everyone can afford, especially small businesses. This is the area where we differentiate ourselves from the competition,” she reveals.

The core business of her company, Focus Events Ltd, is photography and videography services. As an offshoot, the company also provides graphic design services and personalised design services. “Our target market is quite wide. We target corporate clients, we cover seminars, conferences and trainings for clients ranging from multinationals to small businesses and associations. We also work for launchings, parties, shows and weddings, and personal photography services. Our product offering include photoshoots, fashion and model shootings and the coproduction of TV shows,” she explains.

When asked about the secret of her success, Ansina Roothoorodoo replies: Team work. “We never work alone. We have a PR who stands ready to meet clients, do presentations and hence, the clients do not have to come to our place. We operate and provide our services in strict adherence to our business model. We have received very positive feedbacks about the attention we give our clients. We believe in understanding the demands and request of our clients and only when we have fully understood their expectations, do we put forward our services as a solution!”

Slowly and steadily, the company is venturing overseas and started operations in Reunion Island. “We did not particularly go for international expansion. But we now have a client in Reunion Island. As the products are from Mauritius, we take the photos here and send them over to the client.”

Doing business in Mauritius is full of challenges and it can be quite a bumpy ride at times. Ansina Roothoorodoo reveals that one of the main challenges she faces is the lack of human resources. “It is not easy to find young dedicated people to work in field of Photography and videography. An endless amount of young people want to be photographers, but the reality of working weekends, odd hours, public holidays and so on, is not easily endorsed,” she avers.

Another challenge for her is when some clients start haggling about prices. “Often, clients try to bargain about the service fees. Haggling forms part of the local culture. It has also been noticed that even the largest corporates would haggle prices. It is really difficult for us.”

One of her biggest projects this year is shifting to a new office with larger space and an indoor studio in Curepipe. “We are putting forward our new FOCUS Gold package service for weddings, which is the largest chunk of the photography business in Mauritius. This package includes photo and video shoots for the whole wedding, special photoshoot for the newly married couple, aerial video by drone, and highlight & cinematic video of wedding. Many clients have shown interest and the even better part is that both the bride and the groom can book for this package and at the end, it is even cheaper,” she confides.

Ansina Roothoorodoo is also willing to help SMEs by providing video and photo services at a very competitive price. “We also want to empower SMEs by providing special courses on how to use a digital camera,” she shares.