We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Shawn Mangenje. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Shawn below.

Shawn, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

My background has always been in photography and the creative arts. I studied creative subjects while growing up in the UK, and visual storytelling was always something that interested me. When I moved to Michigan, I was in a completely new environment and didn’t know many people in the creative space.

I started RAW Detroit as a simple way to connect with other like minded creatives in the city. At the time, it was really just about sharing photography, exploring Detroit, and meeting people who had similar interests in art, media, and storytelling.

As the brand began to grow, more people started reaching out and engaging with the content. That naturally led to hosting small creative meet ups and community events so people could connect in person. Those events continued to grow, and over time we started partnering with local businesses and organizations to host larger gatherings and collaborations.

What started as a simple way to meet people and share photography slowly evolved into something much bigger. The audience grew, the community grew, and RAW Detroit eventually transitioned into a media platform focused on highlighting the city’s businesses, people, and growth happening across Detroit.

At its core, the idea started with a simple goal: creating a way for people to connect. That same idea of building community is still what drives RAW Detroit today.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My background is in photography and creative arts. I studied creative subjects while growing up in the UK, and visual storytelling has always been something that interested me. After moving to Michigan, I began documenting the city through photography and sharing what I was seeing online. RAW Detroit naturally grew out of that process as I started meeting new people, connecting with other creatives, and exploring the city.

I’ve always enjoyed connecting with people, learning about different cultures, and discovering new industries. Through RAW Detroit, I’ve been able to combine those interests by highlighting the businesses, entrepreneurs, and individuals who help shape Detroit and the surrounding communities.

What helps set RAW Detroit apart is our creative approach. Every project is viewed through a fresh lens, backed by a team that works in media and content creation every day. We focus on telling authentic stories that capture the personality of a business or brand.

In addition to producing media and content, we also help businesses get real visibility from that content. Through our platform and advertising capabilities, we’re able to help clients generate views, awareness, and foot traffic by connecting them directly with our audience.

One of the things I’m most proud of is building a platform that not only showcases Detroit, but also helps support the businesses and people who continue to drive the city’s growth.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

One of the biggest pivots came when RAW Detroit transitioned from being primarily an events and community driven platform into a full media company. In the early days, a lot of what we did revolved around bringing people together through creative events, panel discussions, and meet ups. Those gatherings were a big part of how the community around RAW Detroit formed.

When COVID happened, everything changed almost overnight. Events were no longer possible, and we had to rethink what the future of the brand looked like. It was a challenging period because we were trying to shift the entire direction of the platform while still keeping our core audience engaged.

During that time, we focused heavily on telling stories online. Instead of gathering people in person, we started highlighting businesses, entrepreneurs, and developments happening around Detroit through digital content. That shift ended up bringing a lot of awareness and engagement to the brand.

The transition was not easy. We had to learn a lot along the way about media, storytelling, and how to scale a digital platform while continuing to grow our audience. But that pivot ultimately helped shape RAW Detroit into what it is today, a media platform focused on documenting the people, businesses, and growth happening across the city.

It was a challenging period, but it also taught us some of our most important lessons.

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

I met my business partner, Paige Pope, during an assignment I was photographing. She happened to be attending the event, and we briefly connected while I was working. At the time it was just a short conversation, but we later reconnected and started talking more about the work I was doing with RAW Detroit.

As RAW Detroit continued to grow, Paige began helping out with some of the creative events we were organizing and supported wherever she could. She naturally became more involved with the brand and the community we were building. Over time, it became clear that she was playing a major role in helping the brand grow.

Eventually she asked if she could become a part of the company. At that point it was an easy decision because she had already proven how valuable she was to the growth of the brand. She officially joined as Director of Business Development and later became a cofounder.

Since joining, Paige has helped streamline many parts of the business including operations, content planning, partnerships, and overall strategy. Her ability to organize and grow those areas helped take RAW Detroit to the next level and allowed us to expand the brand and pursue many of the projects and collaborations we’re working on today.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://rawdetroit.org/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rawdetroit/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RawDetroit/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rawdetroit/
• Twitter: https://x.com/rawdetroit

Image Credits

Shawn Mangenje / RAW Detroit