Ella PeinovichFounder

Kenya - Nairobi County

Ella is a venture-backed social entrepreneur, based between Kenya and the US. She is a graduate of MIT with over 12 years of experience leading teams and projects working at the intersection of design, technology, and social entrepreneurship. Her work in supply chain innovation has been celebrated for its novel approach and measurably high social and economic impact.

Ella is Founder and CEO of Powered by People (PBP) is a B2B wholesale marketplace connecting makers worldwide to international buyers. A 1T market, rapidly growing in responds to today’s mass digitalization and consumer demand for authentic and diverse products.

Prior to PBP, Ella founded Soko (www.shopsoko.com), an ethical jewelry brand that sells handmade jewelry to global brands & retailers, as CEO Ella oversaw the company’s commercial and technology advancements, where she developed the company’s innovative supply chain solution and emerging markets business development. Soko was acquired by Essence Ventures in 2022.

Ella has been honored as an emerging global entrepreneur from the World Bank, DEMO, Vodafone and USAID. Ella was an Entrepreneur in Residence at INSEAD Business School 2015-2017 where she guest lectures in the Sustainable Supply Chains course, a featured speaker at Retail World - 2016, and a keynote speaker at the East Africa Retail Summit 2016, she is also a Fellow of several foundations and organizations including the social innovation network Ashoka, is a member of Forbes' Young Entrepreneurship Council since 2016, was awarded the TIAW 'World of Difference’ Award in 2013, is an Honorary member of United Succes, and was recognized by the BidNetwork as the Female Social Entrepreneur of the year in 2012. Her work has been featured in Fast Company, CNN, Forbes, and the Huffington Post. Ella received her Master of Architecture from MIT in 2012 and her BS in Architectural Studies from UW-Milwaukee, where she was recognized in 2016 as a distinguished ‘Graduate of the Last Decade’.