Tag: finalist

Local advertising gurus claim top entrepreneurial award

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Local advertising gurus, Pepe Marais and Gareth Leck of Joe Public United, were named the Medium Business Entrepreneurs of the Year® at the award ceremony for the 2018 Entrepreneur of the Year® competition sponsored by Sanlam and BUSINESS/PARTNERS held in Johannesburg this morning.

After having entered the competition in 2017 and making it through to the finalist stage, Marais and Leck remained eager to work on their business and re-enter this year with the hopes of winning a category. Their perseverance paid off as their hard work earned them the 2018 Medium Business category title.

Founded 20 years ago with zero capital, Marais and Leck managed to disrupt the local advertising industry by offering haute-cuisine advertising services for print, TV and radio at takeaway prices with various services displayed on a menu. Since then, the business has seen its fair share of ups and downs, but the entrepreneurs’ dedication to building a better business has seen them build a successful business, which is today ranked highly among the country’s top advertising agencies.

The business’ challenges have included selling the business, expanding into an offshore market, retracting back into the local market, losing half of their client base, buying the business back, and starting again from scratch. They have since rebuilt Joe Public into the largest independent, South African-owned advertising group in the country, offering full services in advertising and communications through five integrated specialist companies.

Marais and Leck’s dedicated approach has seen the agency grow from strength to strength, winning numerous awards for their business and clients – the most recent of which was the coveted Agency of the Year award at the 2018 Loeries Awards.

The team prides themselves on their “purposeful approach” to an industry that is often compared to the likes of used car salesmen. They pride themselves on keeping the bottom line at the bottom – and prioritising the purpose, growth, development and well-being of their people (both staff and clients).  

In light of this, Joe Public started their own non-profit organisation in 2008 called One School at A Time and have recently launched their own SETA-accredited academy, Joe Public School of Growth. “Over the past decade, we have systematically been making inroads with our two partnership schools in Soweto and Diepsloot. We are most proud of Forte High in Dobsonville, Soweto – a struggling high school that has become one of the top three township schools in Gauteng.

“Pepe and Gareth are determined individuals who embody the tenacious attitude typical of successful entrepreneurs. After missing out on the prize last year, they went back and worked on aspects of their business that they identified as needing attention. Their win is evidence of this hard work and passion,” said the competition judges.

For more information on their business, please visit the Joe Public website: joepublic.co.za.

Entrepreneur of the Year® competition celebrates Christo Botes, executive director: Business Partners Limited

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The Lifetime Ambassador Award is bestowed on an individual who has spent a notable period of their lives in the service of entrepreneurs and/or contributing to the success of the Entrepreneur of the Year® competition sponsored by Sanlam and BUSINESS/PARTNERS.  

This is the first time we are bestowing this award and the Entrepreneur of the Year® competition team believes that they could not have selected a more deserving person.

The recipient of the 2018 Entrepreneur of the Year® Lifetime Ambassador Award goes to Mr Christo Botes – executive director at Business Partners Limited.

Botes is a wise and humble person who has been an integral part of the competition since it was introduced 30 years ago. He is the voice of reason in any boardroom where he participates. He is an advocate for entrepreneurs and always wants to see them succeed.

Botes’ vision and leadership has seen the competition grow from being an internal competition for Business Partners Limited to being a premier national competition for recognising entrepreneurs in the SME space.

His tireless efforts involve reviewing each entry that lands in our inbox and assessing it not only with the aim to the entrepreneur becoming a finalist but to also see that entrepreneur grow as well.

Every year he visits each of our competition finalists in order to understand them and their businesses better and to provide feedback to judges where they may have missed an important aspect of the business.

Under his leadership the Entrepreneur of the Year® competition has unearthed entrepreneurs and celebrated finalists and winners from as far as the dusty streets of QwaQwa to the skyscrapers of Johannesburg.

Finalists announced for premier entrepreneurial competition’s 30th edition

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Celebrating three full decades of discovering and cultivating the best entrepreneurial talent that South Africa has to offer, we have announced the shortlist of 15 standout entrants who have made it through to the final round of this year’s Entrepreneur of the Year® competition sponsored by Sanlam and BUSINESS/PARTNERS.

The 189 entries that were received this year really upped the game in terms of the entrants’ entrepreneurial talent and achievements. Every year, we think that we’ve seen it all, but each year we find ourselves being further blown away by the level of talent being exhibited by the South African entrepreneurs who enter the competition.

In alphabetical order, the finalists for the 2018 competition are:

Andrew and Glenn Eriksen – Cango Wildlife Ranch; Beverley Gumbi – Isivuno Containers Business; Chike and Damaris  Igwegbe – Green City Solutions, t/a Mustbuy; Christina Ester Geldart – Marven Studios; Esi-Gifty Agbohla – Eli-Bionatural International; James Barrington-Bronwn – NewSpace Systems; Kerry and Craig Motherwell – Foxolution SE CC; Leboneng Mathebula – Gridbow Engineers; Louw Barnardt and Dana Pretorius – Outsourced CFO; Muhammed Simjee and Sofiah Docrat – A2D24 Dot Com; Pepe Marais and Gareth Leck – Joe Public; Phillipa Geard – Recruit My Mom; Praveshen Naidoo – e-Waste Africa; Terence Naidu – EnvisionIt Stock and Tshegofatso Samuel and Motlapele Molefi – Modi Mining.

These 15 finalists operate in various sectors of the economy and are based across the country. While the majority of these finalists originate from Gauteng (47%) and the Western Cape (33%), we received entries from all provinces and KwaZulu-Natal (13%) and the North West (7%) are both also represented in the finalist list this year.

With a wide variety of industries being represented, from mining and engineering to recycling and advertising, there is one thing that all 15 finalists share in common – their invaluable contribution to the South African economy. The SME sector continues to play a vital role in the South African economy, so these trail-blazing self-starters need to be celebrated for what they are – job creators and economic change-makers.

The next step in the independent judging process is the selection of the overall 2018 Entrepreneur of the Year® winner, as well as winners for each of the five categories, namely emerging, small business, medium business, job creator and innovator. By running the evaluation process through three different filtering stages, we are able to ensure that every finalist is put under the microscope to avoid any human error or bias from tainting the results.

The 2018 finalists stand the chance to win prizes worth R2 million, which include cash prizes of R70 000 per category and R200 000 for the overall winner. Beyond monetary prices, previous finalists have benefitted greatly from the various networking opportunities and associated media exposure that the competition offers. Past winners have also gone on to win international awards and form valuable partnerships as a result of their success in the competition.

With competition winners being announced on 5 September 2018 at the official awards ceremony in Johannesburg, the judges have got their work cut out for them this year. The calibre of entrants this year looks to be extremely high so deciding on winners will be no easy feat. We wish all finalists the best of luck – you’re all already winners in our eyes.

Finalists announced for premier entrepreneurial competition’s 30th edition

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Celebrating three full decades of discovering and cultivating the best entrepreneurial talent that South Africa has to offer, the highly esteemed Entrepreneur of the Year® competition sponsored by Sanlam and BUSINESS/PARTNERS has announced the shortlist of 15 standout entrants who have made it through to the final round of this year’s competition.

According to Gugu Mjadu, spokesperson for the 2018 edition of the competition, the 189 entries that were received this year really upped the game in terms of entrepreneurial talent. “Every year, we think that we’ve seen it all, but each year we find ourselves being further blown away by the level of talent being exhibited by the South African entrepreneurs who enter the competition.”

In alphabetical order, the finalists for the 2018 Entrepreneur of the Year® competition sponsored by Sanlam and BUSINESS/PARTNERS are:

Andrew and Glenn Eriksen – Cango Wildlife Ranch; Beverley Gumbi – Isivuno Containers Business; Chike and Damaris  Igwegbe – Green City Solutions, t/a Mustbuy; Christina Ester Geldart – Marven Studios; Esi-Gifty Agbohla – Eli-Bionatural International;  James Barrington-Bronwn – NewSpace Systems; Kerry and Craig Motherwell – Foxolution SE CC; Leboneng Mathebula – Gridbow Engineers; Louw Barnardt and Dana Pretorius – Outsourced CFO; Muhammed Simjee and Sofiah Docrat – A2D24 Dot Com; Pepe Marais and Gareth Leck – Joe Public; Phillipa Geard – Recruit My Mom; Praveshen Naidoo – e-Waste Africa; Terence Naidu – EnvisionIt Stock and Tshegofatso Samuel and Motlapele Molefi – Modi Mining.

These 15 finalists operate in various sectors of the economy and are based across the country, says Mjadu. “While the majority of these finalists originate from Gauteng (47%) and the Western Cape (33%), we received entries from all provinces and KwaZulu-Natal (13%) and the North West (7%) are both also represented in the finalist list this year.”

With a wide variety of industries being represented, from mining and engineering to recycling and advertising, there is one thing that Mjadu says all 15 finalists share in common – their invaluable contribution to the South African economy. “The SME sector continues to play a vital role in the South African economy, so these trail-blazing self-starters need to be celebrated for what they are – job creators and economic change-makers,” Mjadu adds.

She explains that the next step in the independent judging process is the selection of the overall 2018 Entrepreneur of the Year® winner, as well as winners for each of the five categories, namely emerging, small business, medium business, job creator and innovator. “By running the evaluation process through three different filtering stages, we are able to ensure that every finalist is put under the microscope to avoid any human error or bias from tainting the results.”

The 2018 finalists stand the chance to win prizes worth R2 million, which include cash prizes of R70 000 per category and R200 000 for the overall winner. “Beyond monetary prices, previous finalists have benefitted greatly from the various networking opportunities and associated media exposure that the competition offers. Past winners have also gone on to win international awards and form valuable partnerships as a result of their success in the competition.”

With competition winners being announced on 5 September 2018 at the official awards breakfast in Johannesburg, Mjadu says that the judges have got their work cut out for them this year. “The calibre of entrants this year looks to be extremely high so deciding on winners will be no easy feat. We wish all finalists the best of luck – you’re all already winners in our eyes,” concludes Mjadu.

Past winner catch-up – where are they now?

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2018 marks our 30th year in honouring entrepreneurs and the contributions they make toward growing the South African economy. We’re celebrating by catching up with some of the past winners of the competition.

Catching up with: Mpodumo Doubada
Winning year: Innovator of the Year® – 2017

Winning business: Pimp my Book is a successful chain of campus stores across the country, founded on the simple premise of buying and selling used textbooks. After earning his first 10% commission on the sale of his friends’ textbooks, founder, Mpodumo Doubada, quickly saw the opportunity to create a one-stop platform where students could sell their used textbooks for cash, as well as purchase the books they need.

It’s been almost a year since you won the Innovator of the Year title in 2017, how has business been since then?

Over the last few months, business has been very good. We do operate a seasonal business, but even taking this into account, we experienced a bumper season. We have since signed two big clients – bringing in an additional 800 students to our direct market.

The direct spin-off from the EOY competition has also been amazing to watch.  We’ve seen a far more positive reception from various universities and corporates – who have now heard about us through the media and are a little more open to trying our innovative approach.

Have you made any new developments in your business since winning?

At the time of our win, our tech division was relatively new. It has now been rolled out across all our stores and is bringing in more and more business. We have seen a significant increase in laptop sales in the Cape Town area alone. 

Also new, is our new Hatfield store in Pretoria – targeting students of the University of Pretoria and UNISA.

We are also working on an exciting new project for an international market – and we will share more details about this in due course.

On a personal note, I was very fortunate to be selected as a finalist in the 2018 Mandela Washington Fellowship as part of the Young African Leaders Initiative. In June, I will join the other candidates from Sub Saharan Africa as we travel to the United States to learn from our American peers – with the aim to bring leadership skills back to Africa. 

What was the biggest lesson you learned from your stint in the EOY competition?

I’d never seen myself as an “innovator”. Whenever I think of the term, I always think of high tech or new inventions. The competition showed me that in fact, innovation is just about doing things differently. If you change the way something has traditionally been done to solve a problem – then you are an innovator. This was a big eye-opener for me.

One of the toughest things to face during the competition, was the questions posed by the judges. Their questions required a fair amount of self-evaluation. Up until this point, I didn’t recognise the full impact of what we do – until others told me what a great job we were doing. The process really opened my mind to see the changes we make to the communities we serve.

What would your top piece of advice be for anyone looking to enter this year’s competition?

Be authentic about yourself and your business. You need to you know your business and industry inside and out as the judges will interrogate this at a deeper level than you ever have – so you need to be prepared to do the same in preparation.

Above all – let your passion shine through anything you prepare.

Innovative entrepreneur taking the local ICT sector by storm

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100% black female owned company – Mighty Comms – is a broadband solutions company that has carved out a niche for itself in the South African ICT sector. The company offers clients across various sectors broadband and network design services, deployments, installations and maintenance services.

Mighty Comms founder, Refilwe Marumo, says she has encountered many twists and turns during her entrepreneurial journey. “My first business venture was a corporate cleaning business established in 2005 named Mighty Care, which traded for about three or four years. This was followed by a period of broadcasting service applications with a consortium, but after two rounds of applications, we were still not successful and the business had to evolve in order to survive.

“In 2014, we underwent a name change, from Mighty Care to Mighty Comms, and armed with a new vision we focused on the ICT industry, and offered a selection of products that we had experience in. With a staff complement of only four, we started small and the growth has since been organic.”

Today, Mighty Comms employs 10 people, the bulk of which are female technicians and ICT specialists. “We broadened our scope to deployments in 2016, which meant a greater focus on Core Network designs, LAN installations and maintenance, which led to the additional job creation for six technicians. We are passionate about empowering women in the ICT sector and have upskilled all new employees through various courses offered to the ICT industry.

Having recently embarked on machine monitoring innovation with our partner IoT NxT, Marumo says that further employment will be created over the coming year. “Machine monitoring innovation is truly the cutting edge of the Internet of Things (IoT), where analogue equipment is ‘transformed’ into digital, for easier monitoring and asset tracing.

“We believe we are at the crux of the future and in order to scale accordingly, are taking in 20 new learners, who will receive the necessary ICT industry training and exposure. The idea is that some of these learners will be employed by Mighty Comms on a full-time basis in the future,” she explains.

Accredited with global original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) such as Alcatel Lucent, Huawei and Ruckus, and boasting an impressive list of Government and private clients, Mighty Comms seems set for great things. “The business has shown significant growth in the past year, increasing revenue by a whopping 147%,” says Marumo. “We have also been approached by three multinational companies in the past year – one that offers hospital management solutions and another that supplies two-way radio trunking products and a swift messaging platform for the banking sector – to be their local partner.

“These partnerships have led to an even greater focus on the upskilling and training of our employees, as our technicians will need to learn the ropes on how we can take these new products to market,” she concludes.

Refilwe Marumo is a finalist in the 2017 Entrepreneur of the Year® competition sponsored by Sanlam and BUSINESS/PARTNERS. For more information on her business, please visit the Mighty Comms website: mightycomms.co.za.

A business created for students, by students

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Mpodumo Doubada – founding CEO of Pimp my Book, a chain of campus stores founded in 2006 at the University of Cape Town (UCT), is a young entrepreneur making waves in the education sector. 31-year-old Doubada from Cape Town founded the business on the premise of buying and selling used textbooks. Since the business was founded, Pimp my Book has expanded to serve a number of universities across the country.

Doubada recounts his own university experience, noting the shared struggle to source textbooks at an affordable price, and how this inspired him to launch Pimp my Book from his dormitory accommodation at the UCT. “I wanted to create a one-stop platform where students could sell their used textbooks for cash as well as purchase the books they need,” says Doubada, recalling his first year of university where he began selling his friends’ textbooks on consignment, taking a 10% commission on all sales made.

Within weeks, his fledgling informal business was flourishing, with students lining up to buy and sell used textbooks. However, the innovation however didn’t stop there. Doubada and his team of now 17 full time staff members, discovered that with increased demand and the setting up of formal stores, a proper, efficient point-of-sale system was required.

The struggle for Pimp my Book however was to find a system which allowed for the buying back of used textbooks, and not only recording the sale thereof. Doubada and his team worked with developers to create their own point-of-sale system unique to their business, which would allow them to track all stages of transactions taking place. “Creating a system that works for our unique business has been one of our greatest achievements, allowing us to expand to multiple stores. I no longer need to manage stock manually, but can monitor stock levels and performance for all stores from the convenience of my office,” he says.

Doubada is proud of his business’ innovation, and credits the success of the business to his team of young, diverse, creative individuals who have all brought their talents to the team. The team is also diverse in terms of experience – with many branch managers having been trained internally from entry level to management. “I look for people who are eager to make something out of their life – I do not train people on the job alone but rather teach them the character and discipline required to make our business work,” he explains.

Having graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting as well as a Masters degree in Business Administration (MBA), Doubada has dedicated his entire career to Pimp my Book, and has big dreams to expand his stores into every university in the country. Ultimately, he believes that his business is making a positive contribution to tertiary education in South Africa, pointing to the Fees Must Fall movement which has come about in recent years in the sector. Pimp my Book provides a workable solution to thousands of students who cannot afford brand new textbooks – ultimately helping to ease the burden of the high cost of tertiary education.

Mpodumo Doubada is a finalist in the 2017 Entrepreneur of the Year® competition sponsored by Sanlam and BUSINESS/PARTNERS. For more information on his business, please visit the Pimp my Book website: www.pimpmybook.co.za.   

Independent research firm carves a niche in the investment industry

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After having worked as an Investment Analyst for large institutions for 12 years, Shamil Ismail – who was voted the 2014 ABSIP (Association of Black Securities and Investment Professionals) Analyst of the Year – founded Primaresearch in late 2015 as an independent, sell-side, equity research firm based in Cape Town. Since then, Primaresearch has grown to six analysts, and developed a reputation for crafting innovative and insightful research which combines traditional fundamental analysis with industry insights. Primaresearch was voted First in the Innovative Research category of the 2017 Financial Mail Analyst Rankings.

Offering some insight from inside the industry, Ismail explains that the investment sector can be broadly split into two parts – the “buy side” (fund managers) and the “sell side” (stockbrokers). “In recent years, the stockbroking sector has faced multiple challenges, including margin compression, growth in a low-touch, low commission, and more stringent regulations which will ultimately split research and dealing costs.”

Added to these challenges, Ismail says there is growing pressure on South African fund managers to increase their brokerage allocations to black-owned stock broking firms. “So while revenue for the overall brokerage market is under pressure, there is a segment of the market that is growing – the black-owned stockbroker segment.

“There are only a handful of black-owned stock broking firms in South Africa and not all of these brokers have a strong research product offering at present. This is the opportunity that Primaresearch has tapped into: To provide high-quality, niche research by a firm that is owned and majority staffed by black analysts.”

Ismail adds that the business focuses its research on consumer-facing companies. “We have developed a reputation as the ‘go-to’ specialists in the niche of consumer companies and, over the past 18 months, have built a formidable client base which includes all the major asset managers in South Africa, as well as four foreign fund managers.”

In a short space of time, Primaresearch has managed to redefine what sell-side investment research could be. “We have identified a niche, and tapped into the opportunity, with plans in place to grow further in the future. These plans include the launch of ‘PrimaPlatform’, which allows independent analysts to plug into our portal, and service the investment community.”

Shamil Ismail is a finalist in the 2017 Entrepreneur of the Year® competition sponsored by Sanlam and BUSINESS/PARTNERS. For more information on his business, please visit the Primaresearch website: primaresearch.co.za.

The local entrepreneur enhancing the fashionista in plus-size women

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Incessantly frustrated by the limited range of fashion available to the fuller-figured woman, Limpopo-born and Pretoria-based Ouma Tema began designing and creating her own clothes and sharing images of her creations on social media. After fielding a continuous stream of questions from friends and fellow plus-size ladies around where she purchased her outfits, Tema knew she had tapped into a gap in the market and launched her own fashion brand targeting plus-size women.

After starting out in Tema’s garage six years ago, Plus-Fab is today a fully-fledged production factory employing 16 people. It is one of the most sought-after designers for plus-size women in South Africa and neighbouring African countries, distributing and selling through fast-growing retail chain – The Space.

Tema says that social media has played a major role in the business’ growth and success over the years. “In order to ensure a marketing strategy is successful, you need to know who your clients are and where to find them. It is also essential to be able to communicate with this client base in their home language. Our marketing strategy is very much rooted in social media because we know that this is the best way to reach our target market.”  

Although known for its timeless patterns, Tema makes certain that the Plus-Fab range is not only timeless and comfortable, but also fun and confidence boosting. “We create a range of clothing that embraces, as opposed to covering up curves. Each outfit should be a statement while still maintaining a timeless sense of style and flair.

She says that she was inspired by the stories of iconic South African women such as Saartjie Baartman. “These women were shunned and even ostracized because their physical stature did not conform to the ‘norm’. Geared towards the fashion savvy, modern day plus-size woman who is looking for plus-size fashion that not only fits but accentuate her curves, Plus-Fab is focussed on dispelling the notion that plus-size women should not look fabulous and sexy.”

As Plus-Fab continues to take the South African plus-size fashion for women industry by storm, Tema is excited about the future prospects of the business. “We currently stock 10 stores across the country, covering Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, the Western Cape and the Eastern Cape, and are always looking for opportunities to grow Plus-Fab’s footprint, both in South Africa and abroad. The most recent development in this respect has been the opening of our online store to neighbouring countries.”

Ouma Tema is a finalist in the 2017 Entrepreneur of the Year® competition sponsored by Sanlam and BUSINESS/PARTNERS. For more information on her business, please visit the Plus-Fab website: plus-fab.com

Failure is a stepping stone to success

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Located in Pietermaritzburg, iLawu Hospitality Group was founded in August 2009 by Siphiwe Ngcobo. What began as a humble five bedroomed B&B has expanded to become one of the most well-recognised hospitality and catering brands in KwaZulu-Natal, encompassing a guesthouse, an inn, a boutique hotel and studio apartments, a recently launched 4-star lodge in Newcastle and a food service division which is servicing corporate, government and leisure events across the region.

This, however, was not Ngcobo’s first entrepreneurial venture. From operating a tuckshop out of a container in a township, to embarking on a tech business that failed dismally and ultimately saw him blacklisted as a result, Ngcobo says that entering the hospitality industry was never something he’d planned.

“The iLawu journey began when I started investing in property within the Imbali township. I was fortunate in that I began investing in 2005, at a time when property prices were low, which allowed me to make favourable returns. When I wanted to expand my portfolio, I came across a property that I felt would do well as a B&B, which is what initially shifted my focus from rental property to holiday accommodation and hospitality.”

This decision was based largely around the position of the property, and the demand in the area. “Pietermaritzburg, which is the capital city and sport capital of KwaZulu-Natal, is synonymous with the Midmar Mile, the Comrades and the Dusi Canoe Marathons. I knew that these sporting events, along with other events that took place throughout the year, would create a demand for quality, yet affordable accommodation in the area.”

Ngcobo points out that back then, he had no formal training in the hospitality industry. “I had no experience or training when I decided to embark on this business, and everything I now know in the industry, I learnt on my feet through personal experience along the way. In the beginning, I was running the show on my own, which meant I was a housekeeper, a receptionist, a night manager, as well as being in charge of sales and marketing – it was not an easy time.”

It wasn’t long, however, before the business gained traction and Ngcobo found himself having to expand to keep up with the growing demand. Today, Ngcobo employs close to 100 people across a diverse portfolio of accommodation offerings that cater to many different markets, from corporate and government, to leisure groups looking for quality facilities with exceptional services, to locals looking to host elite events.”

Siphiwe Ngcobo is a finalist in the 2017 Entrepreneur of the Year® competition sponsored by Sanlam and BUSINESS/PARTNERS. For more information on his business, please visit the iLawu Hospitality Group website: www.ilawugroup.co.za.