Throughout her life’s journey, Vivian Labib has faced many obstacles as a woman who dares to dream in a male-dominated environment. Today, she’s a leading innovative social entrepreneur in Egypt.

Vivian Labib graduated from the Fine Arts College, part of Helwan University, in 1997 as a decoration engineer (interior designer) with big plans to build her knowledge and gain work experience in the competitive business world.

She began work as a graphic and interior designer, discovering her passion for both art and marketing. She then started to work as a marketing manager for various companies, including international clients in Egypt.

Vivian observed that other designer colleagues produced very unique items, but noticed that they always faced problems with marketing. In light of this, she decided to combine both marketing and the arts in a new venture, and began marketing handmade crafts from Egyptian artisans, locally at exhibitions and internationally on the internet, with the slogan, “100% unique…100% Egyptian…100% handmade.”

After seeing an e-mail advertisement for the Association for Women’s Total Advancement and Development (AWTAD), a member organization of the MENA Businesswomen’s Network, Vivian joined and became an active member. “Being part of a great network is the real solution to any problem that women entrepreneurs could be facing! We as women naturally love to network and to work in groups,” says Vivian. “I believe that with many leading women entrepreneurs with real good hearts and that are ready to offer all they can to network, we’ll be able to share a lot of experiences and B2B opportunities. We’ll make a more powerful impact, and be able to overcome any obstacles we might face.”

In 2002, Vivian was selected by the Council for Women in Egypt for a scholarship to study Internet web-mastering in Cairo. The government chose select Egyptian women business leaders to learn about the application of e-commerce and how best to launch this idea in Egypt. It wasn’t long before Vivian became a certified Internet webmaster, and launched her own website, www.charisma-arts.net.

Five years later, Vivian’s success was recognized again by the government. After a thorough examination process, Vivian was selected by the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (www.mcit.gov.eg) to receive a scholarship to study offshore business. Her previous experience in offshore business helped her build a stronger vision for the field’s importance and she graduated with high honors.

Vivian managed to expand her business while working from home for five years, and she looked for new ways to export the unique handmade products. She expanded her product line from seven to over 23 items. In her gallery today, products from 39 organizations are on display and available for purchase, including papyrus, cloth, jewelry, and beaded accessories.

Along the way, Vivian met many poor Egyptian families that were financially dependent on the woman in the house. This inspired her to modify her vision from selling “unique gifts” to selling “unique handmade gifts…to support families.” She helped various communities become productive and improve their livelihoods — among the artisans are refugees, families of prisoners and college students.

In 2009, in recognition of Vivian’s success in empowering women and families in Egypt, the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women Initiative selected her for the WEL Program (Women Entrepreneurship & Leadership Program), with 35 other female leaders and entrepreneurs from the Middle East region. The program, through coursework at the American University in Cairo, gives women the opportunity to develop skills to help grow their businesses.

Vivian remains an active AWTAD member and attended their most recent Corporate Ambassadors conference. With in-depth sessions lead by experts on angel investment and e-commerce, Vivian remarked, “The Corporate Ambassadors had a nice influence. Just seeing them says there is hope! I am not all alone and there are some examples of women who went through my hard time and made it.”

Vivian enjoys learning and she continuously sets clear goals that she achieves with patience and perseverance. “In the economic crisis we are living in, where factories close, brands are sold, thousands are losing their jobs worldwide, the only solution is for us, female entrepreneurs, to continue to hold hands, grow larger and stronger as a network,” says Vivian. “Eventually, we will overcome the crisis as one.”