North-West University: Student Entrepreneurs Compete for Tomorrow’s Success
The fifth annual Leopards Lair® student business pitching competition took place on 1 September 2023, hosted jointly by TTIS, the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, the North-West University (NWU) Business School, the Small Business Advisory Bureau (SBAB) and the bhive Enterprise Development Centre. It marked a thrilling culmination of the 2023 NWU student entrepreneurship programme and showcased the top student entrepreneurs from the NWU pitching their innovative ideas to a panel of esteemed external judges at the Education Hall on the Potchefstroom Campus.
This competition offers NWU students a valuable learning journey into the world of entrepreneurship and start-up businesses, providing an exciting avenue for those eager to explore new venture creation as an alternative to traditional employment or to gain practical business development experience. Throughout the year, aspiring entrepreneurs had the opportunity to participate in entrepreneurial boot camps across all three campuses, earning their chance to compete in this exciting contest. At the final event, contestants had a daunting task in presenting their ideation stage business ideas and pitch decks within a tight five-minute time frame, followed by some challenging questions from the panel of judges.
Prof Jefferey Mphahlele, deputy vice-chancellor for Research and Innovation, gave the welcoming address and expressed his gratitude to the sponsors who contributed handsomely to the success of the competition.
“We are enormously grateful to acknowledge our sponsors, especially the National Intellectual Property Management Office (NIPMO), the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), the Bongani Foundation and the NWU Office of the Vice-Chancellor. To the representatives of other universities, we welcome you, and to the student finalists, we wish you all the best and good luck.”
In his message of support on behalf of the vice-chancellor, the executive director of Student Life, Dr Sibusiso Chalufu, explained the importance of the NWU producing future employers, rather than jobseekers.
Admittedly, he could not have a greater supporter than VIP guest Dr Norah Clarke, director of Entrepreneurship Development in Higher Education (EDHE), which promotes entrepreneurship across all universities in South Africa.
“We have to think holistically of an ecosystem that supports the development of entrepreneurship in all its aspects. Only then will we know that we are delivering students and graduates to the world of work who can survive and flourish economically.”
The results of the competition were as follows:
Thubelihle Zulu’s Studio Gold, which provides augmented-reality and virtual-reality creative services to customers, saw the young man receive the second runner-up award, followed by Omphabaletse Rametse’s Campus Cycling Service, which secured him the first runner-up award.
Zander van der Watt made a lasting impression on the judges with his new-generation Positech Vending Machine, which saw him walking away as the winner of the undergraduate category.
It was a rather riveting battle in the postgraduate category. A spirited tie between Abigail Oliphant’s Wethu Chocolates, infused with traditional South African flavours like milk tart and malva pudding, and Herme Nel’s The RanchDoc, which is a mobile app for veterinary assistance, saw them sharing the second runner-up position. Bianca Boshoff and Anneri du Toit’s PlanPharm, which propagates medicinal plants for phytochemical consistency, walked away with the first runner-up prize.
The winners of the postgraduate category, Fleather, showcased their plans for an alternative leather company, using mushroom roots as feedstock. The team, comprising Madelein de Jager, Le Roux Bernard and PJ Prinsloo, painstakingly explained how much water will be saved in the production of the sustainable mushroom leather. They also won the inaugural Bongani Foundation Prize for sustainability.
The Bongani Foundation represents a group of alumni and friends based in the Netherlands. In her message on behalf of the trustees of the Bongani Foundation, Ms Sinki Mlambo discussed the significance of social, economic and environmental sustainability for new businesses.
“The sustainability prize is a new award for the project which offers the most exciting, ambitious yet realistic intervention to promote social, economic and/or environmental sustainability. For social and economic dimensions, we look at the local impact where value distribution is considered, and for the environmental dimensions the project considers circularity principles,” she said.
The event on Friday was broadcast live on YouTube, with over 600 individuals tuning in. To view the formal dinner, click on the following link: https://youtube.com/live/4Rc_OEpm3xg?feature=share