South African entrepreneurs
Who is making headlines?
South African entrepreneurs are a special breed. They have the tenacity and the vision to start businesses in a difficult economic climate and make a success of it. Here are 5 of the most exciting entrepreneurs that have made it onto the Forbes Africa list of most promising entrepreneurs to watch under 30.
Julie Alexander Fourie - iFix
Julie Alexander Fourie started iFix in 2006 from his dorm room at the University of Stellenbosch. Now, at 26, Julie runs a company that employs 40 people and services more than 4 000 clients a month. iFix is the go-to place for any repairs of Apple and Samsung devices. With branches in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town, iFix provides a service, sells solutions and accessories and has become a beacon of light for many frustrated tech-ignoramuses.
Bheki Kunene - Mind Trix Media
Khayelitsha entrepreneur Bheki Kunene started Mind Trix Media with R600 and no business knowledge nor capital and turned it into a globally reputable brand with clients all around the world. A creative design agency that does branding and web development, this company has gone from strength to strength.
ISP Web Africa's Rupert Bryant – ISP Web Africa
Rupert Bryant (28) is the co-founder of ISP Web Africa, one of South Africa's leading Internet Service Providers. Web Africa developed from a small web hosting service to an Internet Service Provider (ISP) with over 130 employees and generating a turnover of over R100 million annually within a decade. Today Web Africa is South Africa's largest independent ISP serving 36 500 customers. Bryant recently launched Accommodation Direct, an online holiday accommodation directory, which charges a small host and guest fee on every booking.
Ludwick Marishane - Headboy Industries
Ludwick Marishane invented DryBath and is the founder of Headboy Industries. DryBath, a gel that cleans an entire body and rids it of odours without water, was an ingeneous invention. In 2011, while he was still studying at the University of Cape Town, he won the Global Student Entrepreneur of the Year award, along with $10,000 in cash to finance his startup and he hasn’t looked back since.
Doug Hornle - Rethink Education
Doug Hornle is the founder Rethink Education, a platform that delivers educational content in ‘bite-size bits’ and presents it through a social network style and chat interface. The online platform has been created to complement the teaching of core Maths and Science concepts, both in and out of the classroom. Rethink Education has distributed math and science content to more than 500 000 South Africans and is launching in Nigeria, Ghana and Zimbabwe.
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