Business incubators can be a good tool for nurturing entrepreneurial ideas or connecting entrepreneurs with business networks to drive business growth.
This is according to businesswoman Patricia Dlamini, who has over 16 years of experience heading incubation programmes. Dlamini is the former CEO of UDDI, a startup incubator in Nelson Mandela Bay. She is also the ex-CEO of ECITI, an Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) subsidiary that offers incubation for startup ICT and film entrepreneurs in East London.
“Business incubators offer guidance and support for businesses at various phases of growth,” said Dlamini. “They can be a good tool for nurturing entrepreneurial ideas from inception to commercialization. But the key issue is what the participating entrepreneur would have gained at the end of the incubation period.”
“There are early-stage incubators which incubate. And there are incubators that offer interventions for commercialization, where the participants can expect to exit as sustainable businesses,” said Dlamini. “Some are purely accelerator programmes, which target high-growth high impact businesses and accelerate to a higher level.”
Dlamini said there are good opportunities for incubation in South Africa, but entrepreneurs don’t take up the opportunities offered by incubation programmes enough.
“The mistake that we usually see happening in South Africa is that selection is weak due to low demand for the services. It could be because startup businesses don’t know about the value for the services, so incubators tend to take any small business that is in their region or is in the sector they service, instead of first designing the programme to have criteria to drive the intake,” said Dlamini who is founder and managing director of Innovation-LED Development Projects.
Green energy entrepreneur Sandie Qayi took part in Global Cleantech Innovation Programme, an initiative of the Department of Science and Technology as well as in the Innovation Hub at the East London IDZ’s Science and Technology Park.
Qayi said incubators and accelerator programmes can help guide entrepreneurs on penetrating the market.
“It’s not easy to penetrate the market when you start. It takes a lot of hard work and rejection and you come across challenges. You must be ready to learn, you must know what a mentor offers an objective perspective.
"You need someone who sees the gaps in your business plan and can offer advice. Incubators have the value of a strategic partners. That one person who believes in you and is able to recommend you to the next person,” said Qayi whose company AET Africa manufactures Hotspot, a device that can be installed in the geyser to help reduce electricity consumption.
Here is a mixed bag of incubator programmes for businesses in various sectors in South Africa:
Chemin
This incubation programme is for you if your entrepreneurial dream is made of producing cosmetics, natural hair products, detergents or perfumes. Chemin has presence in Port Elizabeth and East London and provides support through its Cosmetics Enterprise Accelerator programme, which offers laboratory facilities, funding and branding support for SMMEs in cosmetics and cleaning chemicals. The programme can take your business from concept to market, by improving the formulation of your product, funding, manufacturing, packaging and labelling, exposure and access to local and export markets.
For more on the link for more details about the CEA programme
Seda Incubator programmes
Government’s Small Enterprise Development Agency (Seda) has various incubator programmes for different sectors. The agency’s incubation centres located in various provinces cater for businesses in construction, agriculture, fashion and jewellery design, manufacturing and ICT. To check which Seda incubator programme is available in your province or city, click here .
Black Umbrellas
Black Umbrellas has different programmes for entrepreneurs and businesses at various stages of growth. If you are an entrepreneur with an idea or a business at inception phase, the Business Foundation Programme, which lasts for three months may be the right match for you.
The Business Readiness Programme takes nine months and is suitable for a business that is already operating and generating income.
Through its Accelerated Business Continuity Development (ABCD) programme, Black Umbrellas (previously known as Shanduka Black Umbrellas), gives qualifying businesses access to supply chain and financial opportunities.
Click here for more information and to apply
Raizcorp
If you own a canteen or a corporate catering service business, Raizcorp is currently looking for candidates to take part in relevant training, fully funded by sponsors. To qualify, you must be a full-time entrepreneur who owns a catering business that is at least 51% black owned. Click here for more information about the Raizcorp catering programme.
Raizcorp has a number of incubation programmes to support businesses in various sectors including engineering.
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