Starting a small business involves taking a lot of risks, working long and hard hours, and making personal and financial sacrifices. Most aspiring entrepreneurs wouldn’t take these risks without being driven by a passion, core values or the belief that they’ll be able to improve the world or their community. It’s these things that, more often than not, drive someone to start their business, and putting together a mission statement can help you define and explain that passion and purpose.
Funding is at the top of many entrepreneurs’ minds. “Gimme money” is a constant heart cry of entrepreneurs and business owners. Many dream of funding enabling them to reach their dream but in some instances, funding can do more harm than good. Mike Anderson (Founder & CEO of the National Small Business Chamber) spoke to Alan Shannon (Executive: Small Business & Private Clients) from Nedbank on how to get your business funding ready.
A lot goes into naming your first business. Some business owners will even tell you that it’s a lot like naming your first child, as you want it to feel right and make sense as part of the business’ identity. After all, this is something you’ll have to say, print, write, and talk about for many years to come.
While you may feel a lot of pressure when it comes to picking the perfect name for your business, remember that you do have some flexibility. You can always change the name of your business later or file for a trade name (often referred to as a ‘doing business as’ or a ‘DBA’) if you need to.
If the events from recent years have taught us anything, it’s that online shopping is here to stay. And it’s no wonder that something you can do from the comfort of your home, on any device and at any time is only growing in popularity.
Whether you run a brick-and-mortar store and want to capitalise on the ease of online shopping, or if you want to take your business fully digital, setting up an online store can be a smart decision for your business.
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For an aspiring entrepreneur, South Africa is filled with both challenges and amazing business opportunities. The country’s people, food, wonderful weather and blend of local cultures are sure to provide any business venture with a vibrant and eclectic backdrop. However, the country’s slow economic growth and high unemployment rates can pose a challenge for new business and aspiring entrepreneurs. In spite of this, there are still many amazing business and entrepreneurial opportunities for those aspiring to start their own small business in South Africa.
The Youth Day public holiday is a reminder of the sacrifices young people made for South Africa. It is also an eye-opener into the struggles the youth of South Africa face today, especially those in townships. South Africa has over 500 townships with the biggest being Khayelitsha in the Western Cape, and Soweto in Gauteng being the most populated township. Because townships have a huge population, there is a bustling township economy that youth entrepreneurs can tap into.
Article written by Allon Raiz
Many people who have business ideas feel in some way that they are not ready to take the plunge, and one of the most convenient excuses is that they feel that they “are not entrepreneurs”. But this doesn’t take away the business idea smouldering at the back of their minds. To try and resolve their dilemma, they start looking around for answers as to whether entrepreneurs are born or made. As a result, this is a question that gets asked of experts almost continuously.
You’ve scoped the market, determined what you’d excel at it, and are ready to take the leap into creating your business and your starting point is the regulatory set-up in your country and business sector.
First, decide how big or how complex you want this business to be. There are various options for company legal structures but the most common is a sole proprietor, if you intend on being a one-person business selling their time or labour or a (Pty) Limited that may have multiple shareholders and offer different legal protections. This also hinges on whether this business will “die” with you, or whether you intend to create something that you can sell and create wealth for yourself and other shareholders.
Article written by Harry Welby-Cooke (ActionCOACH)
In 2024, there will be 64 elections taking place across the globe. In South Africa, we will have ours on 29 May and, as per usual, businesses start freezing fiscal, operational and marketing decisions as the politicians start their campaign lobbying.
This is a situation that, in the South Africa of today, should not be our norm. The decade of State Capture followed by the upheaval of COVID-19, increased blackouts, the continued collapse of state-owned entities and infrastructure, the grey listing of South Africa and more have shown us that this election is unlikely to make significant changes to the situation that businesses are in.
