Stories In Place | Afrocontigbo

For Afrocontigbo founder Korma Aguh-Stuckmayer, dancing has always been a passion. “I have been dancing socially since I was a little girl in my hometown of Owerri, Imo State in Nigeria, West Africa,” she says. After moving to Minnesota for college in 2002, Korma realized how much she missed dancing, and began to pursue work as a choreographer and dancer shortly before she graduated. “In 2014, I founded my own dance company, Afrocontigbo.” Since then, Korma has led multiple classes a week teaching dance that blends traditional West African dances with current, contemporary moves.

When her studio was forced to shut down due to COVID-19, Korma was initially hopeful that her next scheduled performance event with her local dance group would go ahead as planned — so they took their practice session online via Zoom. That was when she realized that online classes might be a useful fix to her newly distanced reality. “I researched classes and started promoting online,” says Korma. “I feared that no one would attend, but I was committed to showing up. To my surprise, people would log in every time.”

Now, Korma is hosting a slate of weekly classes available online for an audience that has since grown much larger than her initial Minnesota-based community, and uses Vimeo Create to promote upcoming classes on social. “I plan to continue to create video content weekly, and have ongoing online classes at least twice a week,” says Korma. “Some of my new students are not in Minnesota and I would like to stay connected with them if they want.” We caught up with Korma to hear more about how she’s keeping her business running amidst unprecedented challenges, and hear the tips she has for other small business owners looking to take their business virtual.