The short answer is: it depends. It depends on whether you are an investor or an entrepreneur. And here’s why. Investors, get there early! On the surface, South Africa doesn’t seem to pose the most enticing investment case. Here is a comparison of the country’s GDP growth rate compared to some of its peers on the continent. South Africa, although it is the continent’s largest economy (for now), is also its slowest, and taken at face value that’s not something investors find particularly ...

Today Uber, the fast-growing transportation startup, announced it will collaborate with WhatsTheNumber, the phone-number search service from Taiwan-based mobile app company StorySense. As reported by Taiwan’s Business Next, users who register with Uber and use 'WHATSTHENUMBER' as a reference can receive NTD$350 (about $10) towards a ride. WhatsTheNumber is a mobile app for iOS that lets users search for a specific location and immediately dial its phone number. Developed by MIT Media Lab alum Edward Shen, it has racked up 800 000 ...

Looks like WPP's not the only big player heating up the South African acquisitions space. Advertising and marketing mega-corp Publicis Groupe today announced that it has completed a 100% acquisition of South African digital agency Synergize. Under the terms of the deal, Synergize will be integrated into Saatchi & Saatchi South Africa. Saatchi & Saatchi’s At Play digital arm will be absorbed into the new division, which will be renamed Saatchi & Saatchi Synergize. Shaune Jordaan, CEO of Synergize, will become ...

Almost exactly a month following the ousting of former iROKING CEO Michael Ugwu, the ailing Nigerian music service has announced that iROKING founder and original CEO Jason Njoku, will take back the reins. Njoku's return will see him continue his duties as CEO of iROKOtv while taking overall control of iROKING artist management, all aspects of music distribution, including YouTube, iTunes and Amazon distribution, and oversee platform partnerships with the likes of Mxit and Eskimi. Following Ugwu's ousting, the ex-CEO commented ...

I recently caught up on Breaking Bad, and thought what great inspiration the show was for budding entrepreneurs -- not the cooking meth bit, but all the other things around building a business and a product that people want. With that in mind, I combed through my collection of movIes and shows and whipped out seven I think all entrepreneurs should watch. 12 Angry Men -- Doing what it takes to get people to see things your way If you have ...

StartupBus Africa has finished its trip from Harare to Cape Town, and over the course of the 2500km travelled, a new education startup for Africa has emerged: sterio.me. StartupBus is a simple enough concept: a mobile hackathon aimed at developing technology solutions across a variety of sectors. The African leg paired 15 African entrepreneurs with 15 global counterparts for the five day road trip. In that time participants are expected to conceptualise, and execute ideas for a startup. This year designers, developers and ...

We all know that everyone wants to build their own startup; everyone wants to create the next billion dollar company. But what about working for one? What about the employees? I think this topic concerns many founders: stock options. With more than a few startups emerging in the past three years, I wonder how many actually set aside an employee stock option pool. Will it only happen when you get funding? Or do most founders just not mention it unless their ...

With technology making it easier for startups to go virtual and decrease overheads, many entrepreneurs are opting to have their teams telecommute. A recent study by Stanford University found a company can save approximately US$2 000 per employee just by allowing them to work from home. For startup companies without deep pockets, running a virtual team can be a great way to keep overhead low while the company grows. Still, virtual workers can present challenges in the hiring process, especially when ...

As part of The Innovation Hub's Maxum Business Incubator, five entrepreneurs were chosen out of a total of 20 to pitch their innovative products to a group of venture capitalists, innovators, entrepreneurs and the public at the Absa Maxum annual showcase in Pretoria, South Africa yesterday. Johannesburg-based startup, SnappCab, was ultimately announced as the winner. Sponsored by Absa, the winning pitch was awarded to Anton van Metzinger from Snappcab with the prize valued at R50 000. SnappCab is a multi-platform hail-a-cab ...

Do you spend too much time trying to figure out how to get new customers through the door? If you’re anything like most business owners we work with on a daily basis, and statistically you are, then it is the number one thing that permeates your thoughts and your actions. It is a constant source of frustration and takes time away from delivering increased value to your existing clients... which is way more fun. The below model is not unique, it’s ...