Growing a small business is incredibly challenging. It demands hard work, sleepless nights, sacrifices, time, and money. My grandfather often jokes that growing a business is similar to raising a child: a newborn requires constant attention and love. Similarly, a business needs passion and careful attention to thrive. Without these, it won’t grow. Small formal businesses alone generate a third of the country’s value added and account for 30% of total employment.
TransformSA hosted an X Space discussion on this topic, led by the founder of Papasha Media, Saki Mabhele. Two entrepreneurs were invited to unpack this subject: Richard Ntjana from the Randburg Chamber of Commerce, who is skilled in Engineering and Operational Management, Business Administration Strategy, Management Consulting, and Change Management, and Ben Mwale, founder of Online Lifestyle magazine.
Here is the summarised conversation:
Q: Please share some of your smart tips with us.
Richard: Being in business is often a lonely journey, and there will be times when you feel like quitting because not everything you plan will go smoothly. There will be obstacles along the way. What you need is resilience to keep going. Especially if you want your business to be funded, there are non-negotiable areas to focus on:
- Make sure your business is formally registered with CIPC.
- Have a comprehensive business plan, including:
- Executive information
- Cost projections
- A marketing plan
Q: What kind of documents should entrepreneurs submit when applying for funding?
Richard: One common complaint from banks is that people often submit incomplete documents. This can cause an application to be rejected or delay the process significantly. Ensure that you submit all required documents in full.
Q: What are your views on bootstrapping?
Richard: At face value, you will find that businesses are starting from zero but have potential. They have the clientele but lack resources. The best way to address this is through bartering, which can give businesses a strong kickstart. Without such strategies, it becomes hard to grow a startup.
Q: Venture capitalists from the US seem open to assisting startups, but in South Africa, the trend is different. Why is that?
Richard: To be honest, in South Africa, one reason our economy is not growing is the low prevalence of entrepreneurship, creating a bottleneck for startup companies. Many more resources are available for startups in the US due to a high prevalence of entrepreneurship. This could be due to our educational history or the government’s willingness to level the playing field for startups to thrive.The education system in the US is vastly different from ours. Also, when comparing our education system to countries like China, we are still far behind in terms of innovation.
Q: Ben, what are some of the challenges you had to deal with in your business?
Ben: I run an online publication, Gauteng Lifestyle Magazine. Of course, there are challenges we have had to face, including technical issues, securing finances to promote the magazine, and gaining followers. Overall, as someone who has been in this industry for a while, making this business successful involves focusing on the technology behind our online magazine.
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