Winners of #YouthStartCT
No easy road to success for young city entrepreneurs
ALTHOUGH the road to success is a bumpy journey for new business owners, provided entrepreneurs put in the effort, they can reap the rewards.
This was the motivational message to entrepreneurial competition finalists from Yandisa Langa, first prize winner, 2017 #YouthStartCT entrepreneurial competition, at the 2018 City of Cape Town’s #YouthStartCT Entrepreneurial Challenge awards ceremony held at the Civic Centre on Wednesday evening.
Thabiso Mokomele from Gugulethu, owner of T-Squared Clothing, was the overall winner of the competition, landing a R10 000 cash prize, a laptop and further business training support.
Second place went to Nomfundo Mabaso from Burgundy Estate, owner of Grey Pepper, a promotional and marketing material supplier. Mabaso won a laptop, printer and targeted business support.
Khuliso Muthige from Tokai, founder of Educates, provides educational services to students from various learning institutions. Muthige’s prize included a printer, access to Innovation Hub and targeted business support.
Langa is the founder and owner of Mountain Tomatoes. He thanked the organisers and sponsors of the initiative which helps and supports youth-owned small businesses in Cape Town.
“To the finalists I’d like to say ‘you guys are the winners, the rewards are coming towards you. You are already the winners’,” he said.
Speaking about his journey since winning the competition, he said: “Through this competition… I have seen that there are sponsors and those sponsors really took me up after the programme. Seda (small enterprises development agency) helped me with marketing material and helped me to make my business more official.
“That has helped me to sell myself more and the NYDA (National Youth Development Agency) helped me with grant funding and with a voucher to the value of R68 000,” said Langa.
He said the programme had equipped him with the necessary skills and confidence to enter other competitions, some of which he has won.
“It’s not like a joy ride, it’s a bumpy way to success, because for me, also, it hasn’t been easy. There was a time when I lost all my produce because of a disease that came in from another country… But here I am today still pushing and I’d like to tell you to prepare for the journey ahead because it is not going to be easy.
“(But) yes, there are going to be good things that will come your way. The City is going to walk with you. It has been a wonderful journey since I have been working with the City,” he said.
Cape Town’s executive mayor, Patricia de Lille, said the top three had made it through various play-off rounds over the past three months. “We have been really impressed by the growth shown by the 100 finalists, in particular the overall winners,” said De Lille.
She added that the top three had shown great development over the last month of the competition. Every week they applied the new information and skills learnt in training and adjusted their ideas and business practice in order to achieve the growth.
“This will serve them very well for the future and what they want to achieve with their businesses, particularly around creating employment in their communities, which is at the heart of the competition.
“My message to all contestants was that they were all winners by having the courage to step out and pursue their own ideas and make it a reality. I encouraged all the contestants to use training going forward to constantly improve and grow their businesses,” said De Lille.