Entrepreneur of the Year®

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About the EOY competition

The Sanlam / Business Partners Entrepreneur of the Year® awards aims to honour, benefit and uplift South African SMEs. The competition celebrates excellence in entrepreneurship, serving as an inspiration to others to succeed in the world of business.
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Competition entrant turns hobby into successful business

Being an entrepreneur in South Africa is no easy task. Local entrepreneurs need to constantly challenge the obstacles that restrain them and recognise these challenges as opportunities that hold the key to unlocking future success.

The 2012 Sanlam / Business Partners Entrepreneur of the Year® competition aims to commend successful entrepreneurs who continuously conquer these challenges, while becoming role models for the entrepreneurs of tomorrow.

Prakash Premrajh, founder of UKD Marketing and entrant in the 2012 Sanlam / Business Partners Entrepreneur of the Year® competition, started UKD marketing as a humble hobby, fuelled by his passion for woodwork. In 1980, Premrajh turned his pastime into a career path by investing a mere R500 and appointing a single employee. Today, UKD Marketing employs over 300 people and operates on a national scale… more

Articles

During start up, a company tends to be very sales driven – operations are fast paced, highly flexible and often chaotic as people experiment with new ideas, stay close to customers, and do whatever it takes to grab opportunities to increase sales.

At this stage the entrepreneur is doing everything: Design the product, call on customers, negotiate the bank loan, sign the cheques, appoint staff and probably even make the coffee! This situation is dangerous, as it will soon take its toll and will limit the growth potential. Twenty 20 years from now the company will still be in its “start up” phase.

Here are a few “red flags” to watch out for:.. more

Everyone wants to see you and there is not enough of you to go around.