How AMAKA Studio Used Retention to Drive Growth and Raise a $2M Seed Round

When Adaora Oramah launched AMAKA Studio in 2021, the mission was clear: amplify African creative voices and build an ecosystem where creators can do more than just share their work; they can actually get paid for it.

What began as a media company focused on spotlighting African women’s stories has evolved into a dynamic creator marketplace with over 50,000 users, high-profile collaborations with brands like Nike and YouTube, and a recently closed $2M seed round. But behind the headlines is a thoughtful and relentless founder whose strategic pivots, growth insights, and lessons from failure can inspire any early-stage entrepreneur.

We sat down with Adaora to learn how AMAKA is scaling, what’s really driving their growth, and why validation trumps polish when you’re building from scratch.

From Storytelling to Scalable Systems

Before AMAKA Studio became the fast-growing creator marketplace it is today, it was a media platform dedicated to spotlighting stories from African women.

“We started in 2021 as a media company. But about a year in, we realized it was incredibly capital-intensive, and we weren’t building something that could scale easily.”

That insight sparked a pivotal shift. AMAKA evolved into what it is today: a creative management system that helps businesses connect with high-quality creative talent, writers, designers, content creators, while also giving African creators a platform to share their work and get commissioned.

The transition wasn’t easy.

“Pivoting from one business model to another was one of the most challenging things we’ve done, but it changed everything. After the pivot, our registrations grew over 1,000%.”

The Problem That Sparked the Mission

The heart of AMAKA is a two-sided marketplace, but at its core, it’s built to solve exclusion.

“There are so many talented African creators who can’t monetize their work. You can’t use Substack or even YouTube payouts in some countries without a U.S. bank account. That leaves an entire population of creative people without access.”

On the flip side, small businesses often struggle to afford creative help.

“When you’re in growth mode as a business, you don’t want to commit to full-time hires, and agency fees are high. We created a plug-and-play solution with access to vetted creatives, without the high price tag.”

AMAKA sits in the middle: unlocking economic opportunity for underserved creators while offering brands affordable, quality creative work at scale.

Growth Wasn’t Magic. It Was Systems.

AMAKA’s growth didn’t come from luck. It came from deeply understanding what drives both sides of their marketplace.

“One of the biggest levers for us was retention. We realized that if we could get people to come back, we’d naturally improve acquisition through word of mouth.”

One standout strategy? Building email-driven habit loops.

“We set up things like email notifications when a brand views a creator’s page. That kind of validation ‘Hey, someone’s looking at me’ keeps them coming back.”

These thoughtful nudges created the kind of engagement that ads and virality rarely do. And they paid off. According to Adaora, the platform now supports a vibrant creator community with tens of thousands of users.

On the business side, they leaned heavily into value-based selling and organic inbound content. Lead magnets brought in email signups, and consultative email funnels nurtured those leads into long-term relationships.

When Growth Experiments Go Wrong

Of course, not everything worked.

“We tried a leaderboard challenge for writers. The more you wrote, or the more engagement you got, the higher up you’d be, and we offered rewards.”

It flopped.

“It felt like a popularity contest. It actually deterred some people. We thought money was the sole motivator, but we were wrong.”

That moment became a turning point.

“We had to step back and ask, Why are people here? What do they care about? We were rewarding the wrong behavior for the wrong audience. And we shut it down quickly.”

The lesson? Move fast, but don’t be afraid to kill ideas fast, too.

Hard-Fought Funding

The $2M seed round that AMAKA recently closed might sound like an overnight success, but Adaora is quick to correct that.

“It took two years to close! It was a long journey.”

That round, led by Equitane with support from Morgan Stanley Inclusive Ventures Lab and others, is now fueling product expansion, particularly AMAKA Gigs, a platform that helps brands discover, commission, and pay Pan-African creators easily.

But Adaora emphasizes: don’t raise if you don’t know who you’re building for.

“Before the funding, we had to figure out our users first. Why do they use us? What’s their motivation? You need to know that before you can scale it.”

Retention → Acquisition (Yes, You Read That Right)

Adaora flips a common startup assumption on its head.

“Everyone says acquisition affects retention. But for us, retention affected acquisition.”

The reason? When your users are engaged and excited, they tell others. They invite their networks. They’re your best growth engine.

“Just because you acquired someone doesn’t mean they’re really a user. They might churn. They might never log in again. But if they stay and get value, that’s when they start helping you grow.”

A Note to Founders: Build Less. Talk More.

Reflecting on her journey, Adaora offers a piece of advice she wishes she had known from the start:

“I wouldn’t build anything until I validated it 100%.”

Instead of assuming people wanted what she was creating, she now advises testing early and testing scrappily.

“Don’t be afraid to pitch something that doesn’t exist yet. Put together a deck. Talk to potential users. Send cold emails. Even run paid ads just to see the interest. That insight is more valuable than a polished MVP.”

She adds, “Coming from a creative background, I used to think everything had to be shiny to be taken seriously. But in startups, that mindset will slow you down.”

Final Thoughts: Growth With Purpose

AMAKA Studio is more than a platform, it’s a mission-driven movement to empower African creatives globally. And Adaora Oramah is more than a founder, she’s a builder who’s made the mistakes, learned the hard lessons, and is sharing her story to help others do it faster.

“From content creation to financial inclusion, we’re driving economic impact for a dynamic community that’s been routinely underserved.”

For any wantrepreneur on the fence waiting to start, struggling to scale, unsure what’s next, Adaora’s journey is proof that growth is possible when you build with empathy, iterate with discipline, and never stop listening to your users.