Young entrepreneurs in South Africa are faced with numerous challenges that range from access to finance and markets to lack of trust. Despite these challenges a number of them are choosing to be their own bosses and embrace entrepreneurship.
In this podcast, in partnership with MTN Pulse, IOL spoke with Victor Chaitezvi and Inga Gubeka who have tackled some of these challenges.
Chaitezvi is the founder of Tripplo, a transport technology company with the focus on logistics. Chaitezvi highlighted trust due to age as one of the challenges faced by young entrepreneurs.
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According to Chaitezvi, established businesses have less trust in young entrepreneurs’ ability to deliver on their business promise.
Gubeka also highlighted access to funding as one of the challenges faced by young entrepreneurs. He is the founder of Inga Atelier, a leather goods company.
On the Inga Atelier product website, Gubeka is described as a boy who grew up in an underprivileged and marginalised village in the Eastern Cape, where people live below the poverty line and are not exposed to fine things.
It goes on to describe him as someone who grew up making wire cars and little clay cows and houses.
Gubeka’s background story is similar to so many other young South Africans and yet he rose above those conditions to create a product that is worthy of national recognition.
He is not alone, but is part of an unofficial club of young South Africans who are finally developing fantastic products that people are buying despite the challenges faced by young entrepreneurs.