Last weekend I attended the the Tshimologong Bootcamp. The bootcamp aimed to get us entrepreneurs to take the next steps in our business, starting with a solid foundation on linking value proposition to customers. There is so much to process, but here are some lessons: South African’s have some seriously good ideas I have...
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Ideas in books, articles, and on social media that could help us overcome poverty, inequality and unemployment in South Africa.
uAfrica – an easy way to setup an online store in South Africa
ZApreneur spoke to Jenn Hattingh from uAfrica about their ecommerce offering. This is the start of a series of interviews on eCommerce in South Africa. What spark our interest was an initiative to assist new businesses to set up online stores, and a promise of support from uAfrica and bidorbuy. Key Takeaway: If you...
Continue readingHow to find out what funds are available to raise business finance
Research continues to show that one of the main reasons entrepreneurs fail to grow their businesses is due to their inability to obtain business funding. Yet, there are more than 350 different funds available to small businesses and many of the lenders are struggling to find businesses to fund. This disconnect between the...
Continue readingFintech has arrived and it’s changing the economy
Fintech has arrived and it’s changing the economy The unemployment rate in South Africa is at an 11-year high, with 5.7 million people finding themselves without a job. The technological boom in the financial sector is not only making waves in innovation, but it’s also creating jobs and redefining employment roles within existing, traditional...
Continue readingProudly South Africa – Telling an entrepreneurial story?
Proudly South African Entrepreneurs Chatting to business owners exhibiting at the Buy Local Summit was inspiring. So inspiring that I almost entirely missed the official programme. Dragging myself away from the businesses exhibiting I attended the sessions after lunch. Over three sessions I was left with a distinct sense that the Proudly South Africa...
Continue readingAutomattic Buys WooThemes: Can you replicate the success?
Automattic, an American company that runs WordPress.com bought South African company called WooThemes for a reported $30 million. Some statistics speak about the scale of business that WooThemes have built in eight years. Its ecommerce solution, called WooCommerce is estimated to power 24% of all ecommerce websites. This free plugin has been downloaded...
Continue readingMaking pizzas isn't chemical engineering
What do a pizza maker and a chemical engineer starting businesses have in common? They both recognise an opportunity, and they will both assemble the resources they need to run their businesses. They are entrepreneurs, but they have major differences. The chemical engineer who is commercialising a new process to create solar panels is...
Continue readingiKhokha – Payment processing in South Africa
Payment processing in South Africa is a huge issue for many readers of Zapreneur. As readers of Zapreneur will know, I hardly ever provide space for financial products because I believe that our financial institutions are one of the biggest constraints on small business development. Beyond offering critique, Zapreneur will profile alternatives that offer “something”...
Continue readingOne large business vs. 1000 little ones
Possibly, the most important question in public policy is “who benefits”. In answering this question, not only can distributional outcomes be assessed, but often the underlying power structures. The recent reporting on the Public Investment Commission investing R1.5 billion of government employee pension funds in CAMAC Energy raises just this question: “Who benefits”. Three...
Continue reading10 Myths of Entrepreneurship
Amongst the many myths of entrepreneurship, the most jarring is the existential question: Am I really an entrepreneur? This is the self-doubt that almost every entrepreneur faces at some point. The reasons for this self-doubt are many, and include the hero status that some entrepreneurs have. In the face of outstanding success by these entrepreneurs...
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