Dec 2022 Edition

Changing the world, one armpit at a time.

Andiswa Madikane

Dikane Consulting

Born in Port Elizabeth, currently known as Gqeberha and moved back to Port Elizabeth in 2016 after she left for greener pastures. Andiswa Madikane studied at the University of Fort Hare in East London, where she acquired her law degree. She worked extensively in the legal field for many years until she decided to do a career change and started working at BMF as a provincial coordinator for the Eastern Cape, where her role as a coordinator is to manage branches of BMF around the province, wherein she ensures that events, workshops, expos and any matters relating to BMF are well coordinated.

Her work in BMF has also seen her coordinating one of the biggest events in the Eastern Cape, inviting prominent and influential stakeholders.

Back to you and your company, please share when did you start with Dikane Consulting, and what inspired you to start the company? “Dikane Consulting and Events is a company that I started recently, the main reason for starting Dikane Consulting and Events is to empower township entrepreneurs by providing small businesses in the township with legal advisory services, business consultancy service, mentorship and life coaching – and lastly by creating corporate events in eKasi”.

“What inspired me to start Dikane Consulting and events was the lack of information township entrepreneurs have, when it comes to running a business successfully. I also realised that some of these entrepreneurs were not exposed to the culture of networking and building stakeholder relationship, hence we came up with the concept of hosting corporate events in the township”.

What makes your company stand out from those doing what you do already and what services do you offer? “What makes my company standout is firstly our mandate. The fact that we work with township entrepreneurs by empowering them with the necessary information for them to have sustainable and run healthy businesses. We also provide a combination of services that all link together. Every business needs legal service, they also need constant consultation and mentorship in the area of business they are in. Their compliance of their business also needs to be in check and these entrepreneurs also need to be provided a platform wherein they can network with other entrepreneurs and stakeholders, and that we do through the events we host”.

According to you, what does it mean to be a young woman in business in South Africa and how do you make sure you keep your head high? “Being a young woman in business in SA to me means that one needs to have self-belief and be fierce in chasing their dreams and believing that every goal is attainable. What has helped me thrive in this industry has been those two things. I also believe that women should not limit themselves in the areas of business they can venture into, I think the world has already proven that there is a huge gap to be filled by women in the business industry”.

nsulting the business, how important is it for be compliant to national business laws, and as elf how important is for business owners to e about every contract they sign? “It is very we have compliant businesses that abide by the laws his also helps when it comes to keeping clear records . Having binding contractual agreements is something should always enforce to be able to hold business ce providers accountable for any agreement made parties”. business also helps a great deal when applying for nancial assistance.

highlights as a business since inception? “Our as hosting the very first corporate Women in Business nship. We hosted an extremely successful event that successful businesses that are run by women in the econd biggest highlight was being a finalist at the Bay Business Events Awards under the category of best ving that recognition proved that we are on the right ou are not directly working on the businessdo to unwind? “I restaurant hop”, she giggled. Or n. I spend most of my days working so being away ecoup ” .

Successful young people have existed in every generation, from agriculturalist Eliza Lucas Pinckney (1800s) to Apple co- founder Steve Jobs (1970s). Currently it is the turn for generation Z to make their income in creative ways, this means embarking early on their journey to pursue entrepreneurship as a means to leave their footprint in the world.

What sparked the idea of a company & when was the company founded? Erricsson Dorra was founded in August 2021, the idea of starting his own watch line was inspired by his brother’s love for fashion which he inherited “ my brother introduced me to fashion, he used to own very nice and unique items of clothing”.

About the founder: Buhle Gotsha, a 17-year-old young black man born and based in KwaZulu Natal south Africa who is currently completing his matric, is amongst the generation Z of young entrepreneurs in south Africa. Gatsha is the founder of Erricsson Dorra luxury watch company.

The first idea he had in mind was to start a clothing brand, throughout the marketing process he then realized that there are a lot of clothing lines, so he ought to come up with something different in the market , Gatsha then infused his love of fashion with innovation.

What is the inspiration behind the name of the brand and what it represents? Trust is won more easily when one puts their own personal touch in naming their brand, it makes it the front and center of the brand especially if essentially stands by what it does and -

what it represents. The feeling of family and sense of value is important especially in theashion and innovation industries. The name Erricsson Dorra is a blend of the names of his parents, eric (father) and Theodora (mother) and him (son) which is the reason why there are 2 Ss in his father’s name. What are the challenges you have faced so far in entrepreneurship? We live in rapidly changing times, especially for businesses ,where they have to adapt to different marketing channels (web and social), decide what to invest in and utilize new technologies, things that were barely imaginable to our grandparents’ generations.

One of the hurdles Gatsha faced when he was getting the business of the ground was not knowing where to start in terms of how the watch making industry works and the process of manufacturing these products, self-motivation and research is what got him through this challenge.

He has also taught himself how to handle discouragement when it comes to dreaming big. We live in societies that make us doubt who we are and what we are capable of. When the society casts doubt on your skills while also making you doubt yourself even more it might be discouraging, the key is understanding why people prefer to discourage others in the first place, this will shed some light on what precisely is behind it.

"We live in societies that make us doubt who we are and what we are capable of".

What has been your brand/business highlight/s since inception? "Seeing the product comes to life was the first, and also seeing people wearing my brand. On top of that Erricson Dorra has made appearances on different media publications and radio interviews and that is encouraging".

And other than your brand, which other Mzansi brand is your favorite? “Okay, I do not own the product yet, but my favorite brand (besides mine) is Dopper shooz which is owned by one of the youngest entrepreneurs Utlwanang Mmeti. It is my favorite because I feel like I relate to the story behind the brand. I love the way it inspires young people to fetch their dreams.”

What Buhle does besides pushing his brand: “I usually work out, building my body is important because I believe that physical strength comes with mental strength”

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Recent economic performance has been influenced by scientific advances and technological change. The ability to create and disseminate knowledge has become a major source of competitive advantage, wealth creation, and quality of life improvements. The growing impact of information technologies (ICT) on the economy and society, the rapid application of recent scientific advances in new products and processes, a high rate of innovation across countries, a shift to more knowledge and rising skill requirements are some of the main features of this transformation.

It has been over a year since Aux God, a company that specializes in manufacturing Bluetooth speakers, was founded. Daniel Mahlayeye, the founder of Aux God and an accountant by profession, has always had a passion for entrepreneurship from a very young age. Embedding his love for entrepreneurship, innovative thinking, and technology is the best way he expresses his fondness for entrepreneurship, this is what initially gave birth to the company Aux God. Aux God products include Bluetooth speakers that are useful in everyday life, these speakers allow one to charge their device while doing everyday activities such as listening to music, this is accomplished by either placing the device on top of the speaker or using a charging port. Another cool feature of these speakers is that they include a built-in watch.

He realized that his product had the potential to grow into something big when he was at a party and there was loadshedding, he had his speaker with him at the time and was able to charge people's phones while also playing music, since then, he has been continuously improving the product and developing new products with similar capabilities.

The magnitude of South Africa's unemployment rate is a national crisis that feeds two of the country's major socioeconomic challenges, poverty, and inequality. Mahlayeye's vision is to simply create businesses that will employ the youth, create legacies, and ultimately leave a legacy for his family.

Currently he has directly employed one person who is responsible for taking orders and dispatching, indirectly there are 30 people who are employed and responsible for manufacturing and producing Aux God’s products.

Since Aux God is a new business in the market that is rapidly growing, the biggest challenge Mahlayeye has faced so far in his journey in Entrepreneurship is scaling as a result of the high demand and low supply. An obvious challenge for Mahlayeye in selling luxurious products in South Africa is that the economy is filled with people earning less and there isn't a lot of disposable income since a large number of the population is people who are struggling to make ends meet.

Another challenge he has faced is finding outlets to sell the products, He has found a solution to this obstacle through recently securing an e-commerce plug with Takealot which is a platform that has boosted his sales.

South Africa is a country that is not up to date when it comes to adopting new technologies, this presents the challenge and opportunity for Mahlayeye to rectify this perspective.

“What drives me is teaching people about what's out there and showing people new technologies that can make their lives easier, find what you love and pursue it so that you never feel like you are working, if you ' re doing what you love it doesn't matter if you ' re sleeping at 2am and waking up at 4am,you will feel fulfilled while doing it and you will actually realize more opportunities are available in expanding and growing”

Lastly, when not busy pushing the brand what do you do to keep sane? “Since I’m an accountant, and entrepreneur, I was mostly swamped doing my postgraduate through Wits Business School – by the way the marks just came out and I passed, he confirmed with a smile. And thanks to my wife and two sons who really helped me stay grounded. When I’m not on the paper chase, I’m normally at home trying to be the best dad to my six-year-old and my ten months old”.

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Silu Business Partners

Any journey in this life is a challenge and a half, and more challenging when you walk these mountains and valleys alone in all aspects of your life. Today, we are reintroducing you to a very vital subject we all needed from the day we started to have an idea of who we are, what we want and where we are going. Unfortunately, we were not always exposed to the right tools to deal with life at that right time. And fortunately, today could be the right time for all to find what we lack if we open up to unlearning and learning things the right way. Before we spoil it for you, let’s first get to know the amazing and incredible woman behind Silu Coaching and Consulting. Tell us more about Akhona and her background: “I was born in KwaNobuhle, Kariega and raised in KwaZakhele, the notorious Vuku Street e“Grogro”. In a documentary shot in May 2021 by Arbinger Institute, on my life and professional story, I revisited the area and it is sad to see how it still remains under-developed. It’s a space I’d like to explore in future with some people in my network who come from that area ” . “First, I am a mom, daughter, sister and aunt and I am protective of those I love, to a fault. I see myself as a simple human being, imperfect but strive to learn and continuously improve. I always have a curiosity to learn new things and a quirky sense of humor”.

Akhona Tota

Founder and Personal Coach of

“Secondly, I love helping others and get motivated by seeing them doing their best to improve their lives. I’m a person who enjoys time with family, local trips to explore the beauty of our province and supporting entrepreneurs within our lovely Gqeberha. Also, I recently visited Mpumalanga, and I’m definitely going back. Our South Africa is such a rich country, in many ways ” , she added with a smile. Akhona did her lower grades at Lamani LP School, Ezikweni and matriculated at KwaZakhele High School. She believes that she is a product of great mentoring from the likes of Mrs Ketse, Mrs Hopa, Ms Johannes, including Dr. D Berry who introduced her to Human Resources. It is through their support she got to study at PE Technikon, currently known as Nelson Mandela University. She has worked in multinational organizations, with the last 10 years being in pharmaceutical manufacturing.

From June 2020 she transitioned to HR consulting, then coaching through Executive & Management Coaching studies and certification as an Enneagram Practitioner Coach. This is the space she is most passionate about and intend pursuing further specialisation in. “Starting was planting a seed, with the view to assess post COVID. However, with support from professional networks, re-skilling support from my previous employer and business incubation program with Black Umbrellas for entrepreneurial mentoring, growth became a possibility. But there is still lots of room for development”, she added.

"Our clients have varied from SMME’s in community development and professionals in public and private entities".

BENEFITSOF THRIFTING

In this age of mass production and fast fashion, clothes are becoming more expensive but severely dropping in quality. It’s easy to fall into the trap of buying cheap trendy clothes but it’s not worth it when they fall apart after a few uses. If you want to look stylish but you don’t want to pay exorbitant prices, I suggest you start thrift shopping. I’ve already given you tips to ensure a successful thrift trip in my last article. Today I’ll be laying out the incredible benefits of thrifting

Financial benefits:

The clothes are durable, high quality and long lasting. They won’t surprise you by fading colour or shrinking like brand new clothes. You can find designer pieces and other unique items at a fraction of their original price. You can buy more clothes with less money, who doesn't love a fun and affordable shopping spree?

Thrifting promotes good spending habits. You’re less likely to impulse buy when you thrift because of the intentional mindset you are in when you thrift. And besides, even if you end up impulse buying while thrifting, the low prices are easy on your wallet.

Thrifting is a low cost way to expand your wardrobe. There may be moments where we suddenly feel bored by our appearance and wish to change things up, and when they arise, thrift shopping is the solution.

Other benefits:

Thrifting allows you to develop your personal style. There are no mannequin displays showing you how to wear the clothes in thrift stores, this pushes you to create your own outfits and develop your style.

The style of clothing thrift stores offer is usually timeless, things such as button down shirts and blazers are easy to wear and will always be available at the local thrift store.

The clothes you buy at the thrift store will be unique, if your wardrobe mainly consists of thrifted clothes then you ’ re unlikely to end up wearing the same outfit as someone else.

Thrifting is simply fulfilling, it’s like a treasure hunt. You never know what you ’ re going to get.

You can elevate your outfits by buying your accessories at the thrift store. Things like cute handbags, sparkly belts and cool hats are easy to thrift and a great way to spice up your outfits.

I’ve found thrifting very beneficial and I hope that with all the tips I’ve laid out you have successful thrifting trips of your own. Let’s take advantage of these bargain prices and keep looking stylish on a budget. Let me know what benefits you have discovered from your thrifting journey in the comment section. Happy thrifting!

Article by: Afrika Kesho

The MEN SHOULD JOURNAL initiative mainly focuses on grade 11 & 12 boys only, from 10 schools in the disadvantaged communities around the metro. We work with boys who are mostly exposed to traumatizing situations either at home, school and in their general environment. We believe that boys needs coaching in dealing with their emotions and assistance in writing down their personal goals as that helps one to have a clear idea of their next steps and dreams.

Through this initiative we address and assist in the everyday challenges faced by men in the society. Precisely, these challenges are toxic behaviors from men. Generally, men are raised to keep secrets, not to cry, with a mentality to think women deserve less respect and to act tough to show they are strong and that results to anger issues, which mostly leads to GBV. And men in general are also against utilizing services like therapy to face their demons, they are known as hard to seek even physiological assistance though they may be going through difficult times. The intention now is to instill a journaling attitude to learners from high school, before they could even become men.

To coach and walk the journey with them we hand them physical journal books to start using them to write down their emotions, and can write down goals too. And follow up with SMS coaching once a month.

#MSJ 2022 Highlights

Direct versus Indirect Offshore Investing

With all the troubles South Africa has faced as a country, investing offshore has become a hot topic. The recent Budget Speech again highlighted some of the issues South Africa is grappling with – bailing out mismanaged SOEs and a bloated public sector wage bill, amongst others. It raises the question: where do we invest our hard-earned money, if not in South Africa?

This article offers a brief look at, and main methods of investing offshore.

Why invest offshore?

A well-diversified investment portfolio should have an offshore component. This allows for access to different companies, economies, and jurisdictions. While retirement funds are capped at a newly announced 35% offshore allocation (40% including Africa), products such as TFSAs, living annuities, investment portfolios, endowments and offshore products offer ample opportunity for offshore exposure.

There are two methods mainly used to invest offshore:

Direct offshore investing involves investors externalizing their Rands, by converting to a different currency – mainly USD, GBP or EUR – and investing in a product in your name, in a jurisdiction other than South Africa. This means your money physically leaves South Africa. Each individual has an annual Single Discretionary Allowance (SDA) of R1mill and a Foreign Investment Allowance (FIA) of R10mill. Tax clearance is not required in respect of the R1mill SDA, but a tax clearance certificate is required for the R10mill FIA. Direct offshore investing is the more involved of the two methods and may be more costly. Minimum investment amounts may be applicable. There are tax consequences, and while it offers greater diversification, there are risks attached to investing offshore – Russia invading the Ukraine is a big risk factor for the global markets.

Indirect/rand-based offshore investing is the simpler of the two methods and more accessible for majority of investors. By using a local LISP platform mandated to invest in foreign assets, the platform’s foreign exchange capacity can be used to send your money offshore, without converting into another currency. Generally, this is done through investment into a local asset manager ’ s “feeder fund”. Your money doesn’t physically leave South Africa, but you still reap the benefits of offshore investing. It is more cost effective, there are generally no minimums and monthly contributions can be made. Tax consequences do apply.

as rash decisions may lead to mistakes.

financial plan, to make the most

Enhancing Employability

The world is evolving and it’s clear that remote work is here to stay. Employers are looking for those who are experienced in this new way of working.

Remember, degrees take 3 to 4 years to complete, but careers span 30 to 40 years. By investing in gaining remote work experience, you will be investing in your future employability.

It can be a challenge to stand out from the crowd and demonstrate experience when pursuing a dream career. But, that’s where we come in. Virtual Internships allows students, graduates, and career switchers to gain professional skills and work experience from the comfort of their very own home, matched to their desired career ambitions.

Graduates: A lack of experience shouldn’t prevent someone from taking the first steps in their dream career. Our interns enjoy guaranteed remote work experience with innovative companies from around the world.

Students: Easily fit an internship into study schedules by choosing an online work placement between 1-4 months long, with options of 10, 20, or 30 hours a week, and benefit from academic credit options.

Introducing Virtual Internships the CEO said work experience is the most important differentiator for graduates seeking a job, but out of 260 million students in higher education around the world, less than 80 million internships are undertaken. This results in many students feeling that their universities didn’t give them adequate career support. But geography and time commitments also make many top internships inaccessible.

“Virtual Internships solves all of these barriers and more by giving all students around the world access to global, structured internships that they can do at any time and from any place,” he said. “It allows employers to create global talent pipelines, and universities or governments can support specific audiences, ensuring enhanced employability outcomes and better ROI.”

Virtual internships is addressing the needs of a more digital working world and providing opportunities for young people from all backgrounds to be part of the globalized economy, ”

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Viwo Kulati speaking her EP, named LOVE!

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rew up in Makhanda and currently resides in JHB where she pursues her music career, Viwoletu Kulati is an R&B songstress who studied music and classical voice at Victoria Girl’s High School. Before we began with her music journey we were interested in knowing who is her favorite muso and why and which music genre she thinks it’s big currently in Mzansi, this is what she said – “My favorite artist besides myself is Lalah Hathaway, I love her tone. I think the biggest music genre right now is Amapiano cause it’s everywhere and I myself too, I love it”.

Now back to you: when did you commence with doing music, what inspired you to start doing music, including why you chose to go for your music genre? “I started doing music in 2015, but professionally & seriously It was in 2018. The Grahamstown National Arts Festival actually inspired me to get into music because growing up in Makhanda I used to attend a lot of shows. And when I commenced with my music career I chose R&B/Soul because I love it, and yes there are some jazz influences in my music but deep down I’m an R&B girl”.

Challenging thing about being artist thus far? And how are you navigating through those challenges? “The most challenging thing about being an artist is being unsigned, but personally it has been finding my sound which I feel like I’ve found now, if not close to.

"I navigate through the challenges of being an unsigned artist by educating myself about the industry through workshops, shortcourses etc. I have great people around me who are helping in certain areas that I’m not good at, and I collaborate a lot with other artists because there’s so much to learn from others, and also many opportunities are birthed from collabs”.

Tell us about your recent released EP – it’s name, what is it about, who did you work with and how is it doing thus far? “The title of my debut EP is Love, and it emphasizes the message that we are all nothing without love. I worked with a brilliant producer Wilson Okafor (Wilson Muzic). The EP is growing, I’m happy”.

What are your music journey highlights so far? “Performing at the National Arts Festival, Dakawa Jazz series, cause I feel that it was such a full circle moment for me ” .

What can the public expect on your EP launch? “They can expect great live arrangements of the tracks off the EP and also enjoy my other unreleased music, great vibes and they’ll get to understand what I’m about and who I am more ” .

Lastly, when not working on your brand, what do you do to keep sane? “I think because I’m in the building stages of my brand still, that’s all I do for now and I don’t really need much of an escape from it because I love what I do”.

HOW SMALL BUSINESSES CAN GET SPONSORS FOR EVENTS

For small businesses looking to boost their brand by hosting an event, securing a sponsor is the traditional way to secure funds.

“Sponsorships are designed to be mutually beneficial arrangements with corporate sponsors providing financial or value-in-kind (goods or services) to sponsor seekers – anyone from SMEs, NGOs, speakers, authors and social entrepreneurs,” explains Matt Fendick, in the article, ‘This is How You Land a Lucrative Sponsorship Deal for Your Business’.

Aside from financial backing, a corporate sponsor can also establish credibility for a smaller business and their event, thereby helping them to raise even more funds.

Corporates, on the other hand, can expect a return on investment beyond just “feel-good association”, such as greater exposure for their brand within a particular market. Additionally, an event sponsorship can allow corporates to build deeper relationships with their customers, gain new audience insights, and enhance its reputation.

Read the full article: This Is How You Land a Lucrative Sponsorship Deal For Your Business

While the sponsorship process is relatively straight forward, it isn’t as easy as it looks and requires careful planning to ensure that it is advantageous for both parties.

Want to find out how to get a ‘yes’ from a corporate? Below are tips to help your small business succeed when pitching a sponsorship.

1. Do your research & set your objectives

Begin the sponsorship pitching process by evaluating both your event goals and overall business and brand objectives. Some targets that you may want to set from the onset include – reaching a new audience, boosting sales or revenue, improving brand awareness, generating leads or providing added value to existing customers.

2. Identify the right sponsor

Research each of the corporates you plan to approach to get the right sponsor match. Find out about the company and their main goals for offering sponsorships. All this information can easily be found on each company ’ s website. Similarly, establish whether there is alignment between the sponsor ’ s objectives and the event you plan to host, including whether you both want to reach the same target market.

Ultimately, your chances of success increase if you can convince the corporate that the investment will pay off.

3. Put together a proposal

Include in your proposal key information that can help the potential sponsor to make an informed decision. Stay away from a generic proposal and instead focus on telling your story, describing what you do and your audience demographics. It’s also important to include what incentives your corporate sponsor can also expect from the partnership.

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