We grow when we come together! At WomHub, we love to witness the power of collaboration and partnership in our founder community, as our COO Anjani Harjeven discussed in our latest livestream with Thandeka Jali, founder of Lactease. Thandeka has been a participant in our WomHub Economic Growth Accelerator programme for the past year, and her company produces a breastfeeding tonic that helps to promote milk production in breastfeeding mothers.
 
We listened as Thandeka told the amazing story of how a problem she faced turned into a business that helps and supports women who face the same, not-uncommon dilemma. She shared how thinking critically about her business and being able to take constructive criticism has helped her business, as well as how helpful it is to have a tribe of women to support her on her entrepreneurial journey.
 
As a new mother, Thandeka experienced the woes of breastfeeding for the first time because she had trouble producing milk. She said, “I honestly thought that breastfeeding is natural . . . I didn’t think it would be such a challenge”. When she explored this further, Thandeka was surprised to discover that about 30% of women globally have this problem, which may be surprising to other women as well.
 
Out of Thandeka’s struggle came her business Lactease, the name being a play on the words lactate and ease.  Along with producing the tonic, Lactease also provides advice to assist women on breastfeeding. This is often an afterthought due to the idea that breastfeeding is easy since it’s a natural thing that women have always done. Watch the replay of this livestream below to learn about Thandeka’s journey:

​Our recent WomHub Founder Showcase was a unique opportunity to showcase top female founders from our boutique incubator programmes on the Circular Economy, powered by the Finnish Embassy, and the Economic Growth Accelerator, powered by the South African Future Trust. The event was a culmination of 10 months of hybrid support, access to engineering experts, mentors and funding, and it ended with a pitch off for these female founders to showcase their businesses and the added skills they have learnt on the programmes.

​Rheineth Modiselle, founder of Bokamoso Recycling, won the pitch off and walked away with R25 000 in unrestricted funding for her business. We interviewed Rheineth to share more about her work, and what has inspired and contributed to her success. Here’s what she had to say, to help inspire other business founders on their entrepreneurial journeys:

Q:  Congratulations Rheineth! How did you prepare and present your pitch so successfully?
 
‘It is important to have your notes and prepare mentally. When you are pitching, there are a lot of emotions going through you and if you’re not mentally prepared those emotions will automatically express themselves and be visible to your audience. It’s also important to ask the organization hosting the pitch off for guidelines. Prior to the pitch, WomHub sent us guidelines on what our pitches would be scored on. I followed that guideline and included all the score points.’
 
Q: Please can you share a bit about what inspired you to start your business?
 
‘I had just quit my job; I was unemployed and actively looking for opportunities. I came across a man crushing glass bottles and asked him what he was doing. We had a long conversation wherein he explained the difficulties he was facing. I had a solution for him and the glass recycler’s problems and that is how Bokamoso Recycling was born. The opportunity found me because I was also searching and ready for it.’
 
Q: Your mission to “repurpose glass to develop communities” is inspiring. What is your role in, and contribution to, the circular economy?
 
‘We purchase crushed glass from our recyclers and sell it to our partner buy back centres (although soon we will be selling our glass directly to CONSOL, which is the largest manufacturer of glass in Southern Africa). In doing this we divert glass from ending up in the landfill. Glass repurposed provides sustainable incomes in the community and is good for the environment. To date we have diverted over 6000 tons of glass from being landfilled.’
 
Q:  The entrepreneurial journey can be challenging, as well as fulfilling. What have been the biggest challenges you’ve faced, and how have you overcome these?
 
‘The impact of Covid 19 was the biggest challenge mentally, financially and emotionally. Having to let go of staff and closing our doors for some months was hard. Learning to be resilient and agile were tools that allowed me to go back to the drawing board, re-evaluate my business strategy and find partners who would help me achieve this strategy.’
 
Q: In addition to winning the pitch off, how have you most benefitted from participating in WomHub’s Circular Economy Incubator programme?
 
‘Having a community of likeminded businesswomen was helpful as we learnt, inspired and leaned on each other. We had master classes which helped by equipping us with essential business tools, and mentors who were there to advise and guide us.’ 
 
Q: What is your vision for growing your business and how can people support you in achieving this?
 
‘I would love an 8ton crane truck (laughs). We are waiting for our vendor application with Consol to be approved, then we’ll be renting an 8ton crane truck for a few months until the bank can assist us with asset finance. This will allow us to reach and service even more glass recyclers, in addition to the over 200 glass recyclers we service. If there is an investment fund that we appeal to, please reach out, or anyone who knows anyone with an 8ton crane truck they are not making use of. Please reach out to me at rheinethmmanakedi@gmail.com.’
  
Q: Do you have any final thoughts to share to help encourage other business founders?
 
‘There are plenty of local and international organizations which are actively looking to help people start and grow businesses, in almost every sector, especially for young women. I encourage you to keep looking out for opportunities and don’t be afraid of knocking on those doors.’

​Thank you to Rheineth for sharing this insight and inspiration, and all the best to her and Bokamoso Recycling! Contact us today if you’d like to find out more about our WomHub programmes, and how they can potentially help you on your entrepreneurial journey.

​Be the change that you want to see!
​In the latest installment of our livestream series, we chatted with two entrepreneurs who are part of the WomHub Economic Growth Accelerator programme and gained an insight into how they came to be where they are today in their respective fields, including contributing to the economy and a number of lives, through job creation.
 
Sindisiwe Chuma is the founder of eTechnologist, a start-up that offers expert problem identification, analysis, design, quality assurance, engineering solutions and the implementation and maintenance of data center systems solutions. She recently shared that participating in WomHub’s programme has impacted her business growth with the employment of their first permanent hire. Vulnerability is a difficult hurdle to overcome in entrepreneurship but being willing to ask for help when needed has helped Sindisiwe immensely in building and taking her business to greater heights.
 
Rizik Link, a shipping and maintenance company that does specialized engineering, was founded in 1997 by Shanaaz Effendi’s parents. Shanaaz is the finance manager and has a background in sales which has helped her build and expand her family business. Passionate about providing employment, they have 15 permanent staff and have hired many contractors, including 120 people on their last project. Being flexible to reinvention and change with the times has been vital to the success of Rizik Link and being willing to self-reflect and improve is key to the longevity that Shanaaz has seen within the business.
 
Watch the replay of this livestream below to learn from these inspiring ladies:

​This session features  WomHub Project Manager, Batha Mthombeni, interviewing these two amazing entrepreneurs. Both women share that their businesses came to be due to gaps that were noticeable within their respective industries. They share some of the steps taken to grow their businesses as well as what it takes to gain, retain and develop employees, especially during the current unemployment crisis in South Africa. "Entrepreneurship is a difficult journey full of challenges but very rewarding in the end."
 
Join us for our next livestream from 19h00 - 19h30 (GMT + 2) on Tuesday 21 June 2022, when we explore the power of collaboration and ‘going further together’. It will be broadcasted simultaneously to our WomHub Facebook page, LinkedIn profile, and YouTube channel.

Feel free to participate and ask questions!

​Keen to discover enlightening behind-the-scenes perspectives from our recent pitch off at the WomHub Founder Showcase? This livestream recording is for you! Watch the video below where our project manager Bathandile Mthombeni interviewed pitch off winner Rheineth Modiselle and People’s Choice Award Winner Yolanda Mbanguzi. These amazing ladies vulnerably shared sincere advice for their fellow founders, encouraging them not to fear failure and to have the resilience to fail forward, while being open to welcoming collaboration and support from others, starting with our wonderful WomHub community.
 
The WomHub Founder Showcase, held on 12 May 2022 at our Hub in Rivonia, Johannesburg, profiled founders who have been working on transforming their businesses over the last 10 months through our Economic Growth Accelerator, funded by the South African Future Trust, and our Circular Economy Incubator, funded by the Embassy of Finland in South Africa. Leading up to this event, 50 of these founders had the opportunity to submit pitch videos, which were pre-judged to select the top 25 entrants, who participated in a virtual Refiner’s Fire pitch off event. The top 10 founders from there, plus a Wild Card entry and the People’s Choice Award Winner then pitched live at the WomHub Founder Showcase.
 
Take a look to discover what Rheineth and Yolanda had to say  about their experiences:

The WomHub Founder Showcase is an opportunity to profile women entrepreneurs from WomHub’s Economic Growth Accelerator, funded by the South African Future Trust, and WomHub’s Circular Economy Incubator, funded by the Embassy of Finland in South Africa, who are running STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Manufacturing) businesses in South Africa
 
As the global economy slows down, and countries like South Africa with high unemployment rates are seeing further set backs on employment and growth projections, we look to entrepreneurs to bring back jobs and opportunities to support economic growth. Sectors like the circular economy especially have showcased unique ways in which we are not only able to create more jobs, but environmental sustainability as well. This is why WomHub and its Partners the South African Future Trust (“SA Future Trust”) and the Finnish Embassy in South Africa are Igniting the Ecosystem by accelerating growth through leadership development and intensive entrepreneurial support for women entrepreneurs in STEM businesses.
 
The inaugural WomHub Founder Showcase was hosted on Thursday 12 May 2022 at WomHub’s fit-for-purpose Hub in Rivonia, Johannesburg. This is the first female founder space in Africa, providing business support, eventing and co-working space for female led innovators in STEM fields, which WomHub defines as science, technology, engineering and manufacturing. The event, a culmination of 10 months of business development support, access to funding and leadership development for the entrepreneurs, ended in a pitch off for additional prize money for the founders.    
 
The WomHub Founder Showcase pitch off brought together an esteemed panel of judges, including Abu Cassim, Founder and CEO of Jozi Angels, Maya Burney, Associate Partner at Caleo Capital, and Syson Kunda, Founder and Managing Director of technology companies PingLady and PingAcademy. In attendance at the showcase were women entrepreneurs, a number of investors including Five35 Ventures, a pan-African Venture Capital Fund for women in tech businesses, as well as a number of international dignitaries and members from the private sector to support women entrepreneurs with access and entry into global and local supply chains.
 
The event was opened by WomHub co-founders Naadiya Moosajee and Hema Vallabh, as well as the Ambassador of Finland to South Africa Anne Lammila, and Bridget Fury, Head, Oppenheimer Generations Philanthropies and Interim Head, SA Future Trust.
 
WomHub’s Incubators and accelerators offer female founders holistic support in the form of masterclasses and on-going venture skills, aiming to accelerate the growth of the founders’ companies, unlock their potential and empower them to develop and create job opportunities. “We are ecosystem builders and understand that there are systemic pipeline challenges to get more women and girls into engineering and tech,” said Naadiya Moosajee, Co-Founder of WomHub. “So we work with thousands of girls from the age of 12 years old, all the way to seasoned entrepreneurs who are growing businesses and growing economies.”
 
Addressing the founders at the event, Hema Vallabh, Co-founder of WomHub, said “This is a safe space where you get to test, experiment and get feedback. We’re here to help each other, to see these businesses through various different lenses, and that for me is where the magic happens.”
 
 “There are extraordinary organisations like WomHub who understand particular sectors and segments of the market, and who are providing really valuable financial and non-financial support to small businesses.” said Bridget Fury, Interim Head, SA Future Trust. “We’re about partnership, backing ideas, backing people and pushing our trusted partners like WomHub to take on risk and to try new things.”
 
“I feel at home here today because when I studied, a long time ago, in the Finnish Foreign Ministry, we had two female ambassadors, and now half of the ambassadors are women,” said Anne Lammila, Ambassador of Finland to South Africa. ”It’s so lovely to be here in South Africa and see this change happen. I believe that events like this help bring forward innovative new business models and circular economy solutions, where you engage women and create wellbeing not only for that woman but for her community and family.”
 
Tension ran high and inspiration abounded as the founders pitched their businesses for possible investment and access to market opportunities, while showcasing their tenacity in building incredible technology and engineering companies in South Africa. All 50 founders from WomHub’s Economic Growth Accelerator and Circular Economy Incubator were given the opportunity to engage with WomHub’s Partners, investors and network, with a number of financial commitments made in the room. The exciting, closely contested pitch off was won by Rheineth Modiselle, founder of Bokamoso Recycling. Yolanda Mbanguzi, founder of Zoe’ Projects and Consulting, walked away with the People’s Choice Award, thanks to vibrant online engagement on her pitch video. You can find the founders’ pitches at the WomHub Founder Showcase Playlist on WomHub’s YouTube channel, and learn more about the founders and programmes at www.womhub.com.

WomHub will run another Founder Showcase in October as it aims to ignite and build the entire ecosystem and support economic growth and prosperity by investing in women entrepreneurs in STEM businesses across South Africa and around the world.
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Be informed and inspired by two powerhouse women in our latest livestream session! WomHub Co-Founder Naadiya Moosajee interviews Bridget Fury, Head of Oppenheimer Generations Philanthropies and Interim Head of the South African Future Trust. They share profound insight about the power of partnership and how our organisations are collectively contributing to empowering entrepreneurs in particular.
 
Oppenheimer Generations Philanthropies is a diverse community of commercial ventures and not-for-profit organisations that represent the global interests of the Nicky and Jonathan Oppenheimer family. In March 2020, the Oppenheimer Generations Foundation donated R1 billion Rand to establish the SA Future Trust to support small businesses through the Covid-19 crisis by working with various partners in South Africa, including a number of leading banks and selected incubators for entrepreneurs.
 
We at WomHub are honoured and grateful for the partnership we share with the SA Future Trust, and for their funding of our Economic Growth Accelerator programme. As Bridget and Naadiya discuss, it’s deeply inspiring to see the positive impact that this programme and others like it have been making for many of our amazing female founders, their businesses, communities and the broader economy as a whole. In case you missed it, take a look below to catch up on this important conversation.

​Let’s get real with founder insights from the entrepreneurial front lines. In case you missed our last captivating livestream, catch the replay below and be inspired by two phenomenal women and their business experiences!
 
Charlette N’Guessan, co-founder of Bace API, is an Ivorian tech entrepreneur based in Ghana. In 2020, at the age of 26, she became the first woman to win the Royal Academy of Engineering’s £25,000 Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation. Bace API provides a digital verification system that uses Artificial Intelligence and facial recognition to verify identities remotely and in real time; a solution that could revolutionize cyber security and help to curb identity fraud across Africa.
 
23-year-old Tsepang Khoboko hails from Welkom in the Free State, South Africa. She’s passionate about creating and improving access particularly towards Africa’s development and women realising their dreams. Her business, TAQA (Pty) Ltd, aims to build a digital platform for illustrative children’s audio books in all 11 official South African spoken languages that will help African children develop a skill and love for reading, through stories written in their mother tongue.

,Watch the video above, featuring our WomHub project manager, Batha Mthombeni, interviewing these two dynamic founders. They share challenges they’ve faced, how they’ve overcome them, as well as key tips and encouragement to help fellow female founders on their entrepreneurial journeys. From dealing with rejection to the demands of pitching for funding, promoting yourself and wearing many different business hats.
 
Stay tuned for our next livestream from 19h00 - 19h30 (GMT + 2) on Tuesday 10 May 2022, when our WomHub co-founder Naadiya Moosajee, will interview Bridget Fury, Interim Head of the South African Future Trust. It will be broadcast simultaneously to our WomHub Facebook page, LinkedIn profile and YouTube channel. Don’t miss this session with these powerhouse women, who’ll be sharing valuable insight about the power of partnership!

Our livestream series has officially launched! In case you missed the first vibrant session, you can click below to watch and catch up on the insights and inspiration that our WomHub COO and Programme Director Anjani Harjeven shared. This includes valuable tips about pitching for funding and what to bear in mind to position yourself and your business for success.
 
As Anjani explained, there are far reaching benefits to be gained from learning how to package your product or service in an authentic and compelling way that’s tailored to the particular person you plan to approach, while providing clear, concise information and a specific ask that will motivate them to respond favorably to your call to action.

It’s important to apply strategic thinking and research to verify the need that you address, solution you provide, market you are targeting and competitive advantage you have. Of course, there are a number of other key factors to consider, such as your revenue model and growth strategy, which Anjani also discusses in this livestream conversation:

Various WomHub programmes dive deeply into the practicalities of how to achieve all of this, within our wonderfully supportive community of founders and mentors. If you have any questions about how to pitch effectively, then be sure to watch the replay above and visit www.womhub.com to find out more about our programmes and how you can get involved.

The purpose of this livestream series is to share insights, inspiration and resources to support you, our WomHub community, on your personal and professional journey, and to give you the opportunity to connect and interact with us in real time! Keep a lookout for sessions that will be broadcasted simultaneously every other Tuesday from 19h00 – 19h30 (GMT +2) on WomHub’s Facebook page, LinkedIn profile and YouTube channel.

In the meantime, we’d love your help in making these sessions as relevant and valuable for you as possible. So please click here and answer a few quick questions to let us know what topics will be most helpful for us to address in these sessions and what you’d most like to take away from them.
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Thank you for being part of igniting the ecosystem with us!

The COVID-19 pandemic brought a lot of devastation to the South African economy, more especially SMME’s and entrepreneurs. It further exposed how poorly managed some of these businesses were. My name is Zuziwe Maphalala and I am an entrepreneur from Katlehong, a township in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Being selected to be part of the WomHub Economic Growth Accelerator was a dream come true. Before being selected by WomHub, I ran my businesses as a hustler. The programme has now taught me how to corporatise. This has led me to grow and scale successfully. I started only as an online store for black businesses to showcase their products and services on a global platform. Although I had many customers, I could never get the business to launch successfully. The biggest challenge was that many of my client’s products or services were not ready for market. They faced many of the challenges I too faced as a township entrepreneur.
​
During the first in-person session while Anjani Harjeven, COO of WomHub was giving a lesson, I had a light bulb moment. I realised I was the solution to my township and many others. This meant I had to start over. I had to restructure my whole business. This would have been something too overwhelming for me, especially with all the challenges I already had on my plate but all the content we went through in those three (3) days assisted me to redesign my whole business.
 
When I got back to my business, I used all my newly gained knowledge and in November 2021, I relaunched as Zoezie Business Consulting, a township economic development consultancy. I offer tailored business solutions designed for township-based enterprises to establish a successful Black Township Economy. And just like that I had created a new Black Township Ecosystem that provides a safe and trusted environment for Black Township-based Enterprises to thrive. The Zoezie Business Consultancy signed up strategic partners who offer professional services such as legal, accounting, business services, sales and marketing, digital marketing, project management, training and more. This means our services are now customised to suit and work for the Black Township Business Ecosystem.
 
We offer a one (1) hour free business diagnosis session, giving our customers a chance to determine if our value proposition suits their business goals. Our two (2) core packages that they can choose from depending on the stage of their business is Business Development and Business Management. These packages are offered as three (3) months, six (6) months as well as one (1) year contracts. We also offer established businesses a management agency contract which allows us to penetrate burdensome barriers faced by Township-Based Enterprises on their behalf. This has now made my website and app business platform a reality that has clients that are ready and suitable to be introduced to the global market.
 
Our clients currently include SMMEs and entrepreneurs in these industries, including optometrists, construction, spaza shops, restaurants and many more. This new business venture has been a continuous learning journey which has also increased my network and stakeholders. The next phase is working with my stakeholders to bring more opportunities and resources to the township through our workshops and training programs. The future has never looked so bright and promising for Black Townships. This has given many of us the hope that the future township economy will be run by capable entrepreneurs. The knowledge and experience obtained will develop them into smart Townships ready to take on the global economy.

WomHub and Sasol are proud to be partnering to develop South African, women-led engineering businesses in creating a better economy for all.

Research continues to show that more diverse and equitable businesses create a future economy and environment that brings increased productivity, creativity and reputational value. More than individuals, STEM businesses can create a better economy for all. WomHub understands the pivotal role female entrepreneurs play in unlocking the global STEM economy, the impact of job creation and inclusion into broader supply chains to drive economic recovery and growth for our communities, country, and continent. With the frame of reference of actively supporting the development of women entrepreneurs in engineering and technology industries, the Sasol Women in Engineering Incubator Programme has been designed to actively develop and grow South African women-owned small, medium, and micro-enterprise (SMME) businesses and their founders.
 
The Sasol Women In Engineering Incubator Programme is an opportunity to support the growth of the company, unlock its potential and enable hiring more people within its growth trajectory. The programme has been designed building on WomHub’s 17 years of experience working with the engineering sector and entrepreneurs, especially those with impact businesses to develop skills and foster leadership, entrepreneurship and facilitate mentorship and networking.
 
The first year-long hybrid (in-person and virtual) offering of the programme will run from March 2022 – March 2023 for fifteen (15) qualifying South African women entrepreneurs running business in Engineering and Tech. The programme includes access to WomHub’s unique innovation and co-working space in Johannesburg, live masterclasses, one-on-one venture clinics and in-person working sessions.
 
Anjani Harjeven, WomHub COO shares, “We’re delighted to partner with Sasol to further our ambition to develop women entrepreneurs on the continent and further enhance equitable economic development. Through our partnership with Sasol, we will amplify this impact and drive the creation of future fit women-led businesses in Engineering and Tech.”
 
In sharing the importance of the WomHub – Sasol partnership, Jabulile Ratsibe, Sasol's Head of Enterprise and Supplier Development shares, “Investing in female entrepreneurs, is about building not only a more inclusive economy, but benefiting society. Through our partnership with WomHub, we are excited for the opportunity to effectively contribute to the development of a pool of credible, future-fit, female-owned and led businesses. Enabling the success of women in engineering and technology, truly brings Sasol’s purpose of Innovating for a better world to life.”

​The program will be accepting applications from entrepreneurs until 10 March 2022. To learn more about the Sasol Women in Engineering Incubator Programme, click the link below.